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'' ’ •’sMfl’ .M ‘-VW; ’'* 






A Dangerous 
©^Mission 

A Story of the Ph)ilippiQes. 


by 

Charles Lester. 






AUTHOR OF 

Thomas CraigwilW '*The Haunted Light-houseT' 
etc. 


THE EDITOR PUBLISHING CO. 

CINCINNATI 
1900. 




I — — 

^ !:-*br«py of Gowffress 

f Two CoeiES Ricttvco 

euj 2./, 1900 

LA./rrt^z. 

SBCONO COPY. 

9«li>«r«l to 

L ORDER DtViSlON, 

JUL 5 1900 


TWO COPIES RECEIVBO. 

library of CoagrMfc 

Officoofth* 

MAY 21 1900 


of Copyrigkti^ 



\ 

. 64872 


COPYRIGHTED 

EDITOR PUBLISHING COMPANY 
CINCINNATI. 


PREFACE. 


Believing that honesty, and frankness in 
dealing with the public should be an au- 
thor’s first thought, I warn you, indulgent 
reader of this Uttle volume, that searching 
for a moral between its covers will be val- 
uable time lost. But if by any obscure 
chance one of you discovers something con- 
tained herein that you think is a moral, 
have pity on the author, cherish the thought 
in your memory, but I adjure you to not 
mention it even to your “dearest and near- 
est” friend. 

I might as well confess (for you will 
certainly find it out before you have read 
the last chapter) that I did not at first 
intend to impose on you by having this 
story published in book form ; it was writ- 
ten with a selfish purpose, i. e., my own 
amusement. 

But when the time came to write “The 
End” and say good-bye forever to the many 
friends of my imagination, they objected 

I 


II 


PREFACE 


so strenuously to being left lying in some 
close fitting drawer to be covered with foul 
smelling dust, and eaten by moths, I shame- 
facedly proposed “fire” as the easiest way 
out of the difficulty, but their horror at the 
mere mention of the word touched my 
heart. “We are your own children,” they 
cried. “How can you be so heartless as to 
consign us to such a fate? Is this your 
gratitude for all we have done for you !” 

When I gave the subject more serious 
thought I remembered how when tired and 
worn in mind and body, they came to com- 
fort and amuse me, and how they tried to 
make me forget all the cares, and worry of 
this busy old world ; so when a friend sug- 
gested the plan of building them a “Home” * 
in book form, I gladly consented, for I love 
them. 

I cannot ask you to do the same, but I 
do ask you to deal as kindly with them as 
your sense of justice will permit, and now 
allow me to present to you these friends, 
(Floyd Vandercook ; Leudesso, the Filipino 
Heafford Vandercook ; Wadna Virden, and 
Clayton Melrose) — in “A Dangerous Mis- 
sion.” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 




A DANGEROUS MISSION. 


A STORY OF THE PHILIPPINES. 


CHAPTER I. 

“Floyd, you remember me speaking to 
you several days ago regarding what I 
considered would be a safe place to invest 
some capital : I mean the Philippines. 
From present indications I am led to believe 
that this Government will acquire them, 
through treaty ; while I am not sure that 
they will be annexed, I am almost certain 
that whatever government is set up there, 
the United States will at least establish a 
protectorate over them. Under these cir- 
cumstances, boy, the internal industries of 
the Islands are bound to grow, and their 
natural wealth will surely be utilized, 
and like a flower that has drooped for the 
want of a little timely care, they will take 
a new lease of life, and grow and bloom. 

1 


2 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


They are bound to do this, boy. The old 
and much abused saying that, ‘Trade will 
follow the flag,’ is nevertheless true, and 
when that flag happens to be the Stars and 
Stripes it is an already accomplished fact. 

“Now then, boy, this being the case, it 
is only fair to presume that capital will at 
once turn in that direction for investment, 
for I believe that a good majority of the 
thinking men of business look at the mat- 
ter just as I do. But as bitter experience 
has taught me not to take a leap in the dark, 
as it were, I must know for a certainty the 
condition of the Islands, and in what to 
invest, and the only way to know this, my 
boy, is to investigate ; and I have decided 
to send a man there for that purpose.” 

The speaker was Mr. Healford Vander- 
cook, a wealthy capitalist of Chicago. 
Place, his private office on State Street. 
Time, Nov. 1st, 1898. 

On the opposite side of the table sat his 
nephew, Floyd Vandercook, to whom the 
opening remarks oi this chapter were 
addressed. A handsome young man of 
twenty-two years. Tall, slender, with Ij^rge, 
honest blue eyes that fairly beamed with 


A DANGEROUS MISSION a 

good nature and intelligence. His well- 
shaped head was adorned with a great 
mass of light brown hair, combed back 
from a high and broad forehead. He was 
handsome more on account of his manly 
appearance and gentlemanly dignity and 
bearing than his features and dress. 

As his uncle’s confidential secretary and 
adviser he occupied a position that spoke 
more for his sterling worth and character, 
than anything that could be said in his 
behalf. 

His uncle always consulted him on all 
matters, and had learned to place the ut- 
most confidence in his advice and counsel. 

Perhaps, in taking Floyd into his confi- 
dence, Heafford Vandercook had in mind 
the safety of his millions after his death, 
for it was the old man’s intention to leave 
all his great wealth to Floyd, who beside 
Clayton Melrose, was his only heir. 

But as Melrose was supposed to be very 
wealthy by an inheritance from his mother, 
he could not hope to profit by the death of 
his mother’s brother, Heafford Vandercook, 
unless, perchance, Floyd should die. 

Like all shrewd men of wealth, Mr. Van- 


4 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


dercook was constantly on the alert for 
“openings” as he called them, where he 
could invest some of his capital to good 
advantage. And he thought he saw in 
the Philippine Islands, especially Luzon, 
one of the openings which he sought, 
and he decided to send Floyd there 
to investigate. He could have found a 
better man, perhaps, but a rumor had 
reached him that his favorite nephew was 
about to marry. Who, rumor did not state. 

This he considered such a crime, being 
himself a bachelor, that he decided to 
make Floyd his commissioner in order to 
thwart it. In reaching this decision he 
made himself believe that he was doing his 
nephew a great service. 

“It will prove their love for each other; 
whoever the girl is, I would not trust her 
till I had proven her to be true. They are 
all jilts, as fickle as the weather,” said he. 
And his mind was made up. But here was 
where Heafford Vandercook made the one 
and fatal error of his life. An error 
that brought untold agony to himself, and 
those he loved dearly and tenderly, and to 
avoid which he would willingly have 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


5 


parted with all his great fortune; but he did 
not know, and not knowing, he was power- 
less to avert the terrible consequences. 

“Yes,” said he, looking sharply at his 
nephew to note the effect of the announce- 
ment, “I have about decided to send a man 
there.” 

“Capital idea. Uncle, I quite agree with 
you. Men with money to invest will, as 
you say, be quick to embrace the advan- 
tages this new field holds. 

“What you want is someone to go over 
the ground thoroughly, note its natural re- 
sources, its capability for improvement, 
its probable future government, which will 
of necessity play a very important part and 
on which more than on anything else de- 
pends its prosperity. I imagine it will be 
no easy matter to find a man suitable for 
this very important commission. He must 
be a man of experience, and extraordinary 
good judgment, and one in whom you have 
the utmost confidence. Cousin Melrose is 
capable, and I believe he would be — ” 

“Just the man to advise me to invest in 
some worthless enterprise. No, Floyd, 
Clayton Melrose is not the man I want. 


6 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Let him go on wasting the money his par- 
ents worked hard to lay by, he’ll never 
spend a cent of mine. No, I have a man in 
mind who, although young and without 
much experience, I am positive will be just 
the man I want. At least I shall be satis- 
fied with whatever report he brings back. 
I wish to consult you about him.” 

“I am sure. Uncle, that your selection 
will be all that I could desire, but I thank 
you for your kindnees all the same.” 

“Well Floyd, I am not so sure that you 
will not object when I tell you his name. 
It 9-11 depends on you, however, if you say 
he is to go, why go he must. If you say 
he must not go I will try to find someone 
else. So make no rash decision until you 
know his name.” 

“My Uncle Vandercook’s recommendation 
is enough for me. I am perfectly willing 
that he should go, whoever he may be, if 
you choose to honor me by asking my opin- 
ion. Who is he?” 

“The first two letters of his name are 
Floyd Vandercook. Ha! Ha! Floyd, this 
is once your old uncle has outwitted you. 
Well, well, I did that nicely.” The old 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


7 


gentleman’s success at getting his nephew’s 
promise to go before he knew it, pleased 
him greatly and he rubbed his hands to- 
gether gleefully. Looking up he encount- 
ered his nephew’s eyes fixed on him with a 
shade of mixed reproach and doubt. 

“Well, what is it, Floyd, my boy? Don’t 
you want to go, after all? I warned you not 
to be hasty.” 

‘‘Uncle, you do not know how I appre- 
ciate the honor, but I am not so sure after 
all of the wisdom of your choice. Then, 
Uncle, there is something else I ought to 
have told you before.” Floyd hesitated a 
little, then continued: “You may be angry 
with me, but I lacked the courage to tell 
you before;” here he hesitated again. 

His uncle seemed annoyed at this and 
said: “Well, well, out with it; been ‘dip- 
ping in’ a little at the Board? How much 
is it, boy? I’ll fix it, but don’t do it again. 
Don’t do it again, boy; we’ve all got to 
learn.” 

Floyd could not repress a smile at the 
bare thought, and said : “No! No! Uncle, 
not half so bad as that. Fact is, uncle, 
I’m in love. There, you know it and can 


8 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


understand my feelings about going so far 
away.” 

His uncle assumed to be greatly sur- 
prised at the announcement and exclaimed : 
“You in love! Well, this is indeed a sur- 
prise, but I could hardly expect you to re- 
main single as I have; there’s no pleasure 
in it I assure you. Who is she, may I ask?” 

“Her name. Uncle, is Wadna Virden.” 

At the mention of the name the old 
man’s air of assumed surprise gave way to 
one of genuine consternation. He fairly 
leaped from his chair. “Virden! Virden! 
How dare you, sir, ally yourself with a 
family the head of which is my bitterest 
enemy! Oh, Floyd, Floyd, you have hurt 
me cruelly.” He seated himself and 
placed his head in his hands, now more 
than ever determined to send his nephew 
away, and thwart what he now fully be- 
lieved was a deliberate plan of Theodore 
Virden to gain a portion of his fortune. 

Flojd, who had by this time recovered 
from his surprise at the strange conduct 
of his uncle, said kindly: “I am very sorry, 
dear Uncle, to have displeased you unwit- 
tingly. I did not know. Besides she is 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


9 


not responsible for the acts of her father ; 
whatever his sin you cannot blame her. 
You do not know her, dear Uncle, or you 
would love her too.” 

, “Ah, Floyd, my boy,” said the old 
man, slowly raising his head, “I’m still a 
a weak man, to give way like this, but I 
will explain to you my reason. Of course 
the daughter is not to blame, but of that 
we will speak later. 

“When I was a young man struggling for 
a place in the world I met a very beautiful 
girl in a town out West. I made her ac- 
quaintance, called, and finally ended by 
asking her to marry me. She professed to 
love me, and I believe she did, but her 
father would not give his consent until I 
had made a mark as a business man, and 
accumulated enough to keep his daughter 
from want. But he promised that when I 
could show a certificate of deposit for ten 
thousand dollars he would give his consent. 
I will never forget the parting. Her arms 
were about my neck and her head upon 
my shoulder as she bade me hurry back to 
her. This meeting, of course, was secret. 
Well, away I went full of hope and deter- 
mination to claim her. 


10 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“Two years went by. I struck a good 
streak of gold out West and at the end of 
that time instead of ten thousand I had 
over two hundred thousand in clear cash. 
Ah Floyd, how proud I was and happy. 
The train that bore me to the town where 
she lived seemed to go at a snail’s pace. 
I wanted to fly. At last I arrived, and 
hired a hack and was driven to her home. 

“ ‘Aha!’, I thought, as I approached the 
house, ‘they must be expecting me, lights 
everywhere!’ When I got nearer I could 
hear music, and the noise of rippling 
laughter and happy voices came to my ears. 

“As I climbed the steps I met my love 
coming out leaning on the arm of a young 
man — and oh, it is still fresh in my mind — 
she wore a bridal veil and was followed by 
her maids and her parents. 

“I turned deathly sick and dizzy for I 
knew only too well what it meant. I stag- 
gered away and tried to forget. I have 
been trying for thirty years, but have not 
succeded. The man was Theodore Virden. 
The woman was the same that had prom- 
ised to love me forever, that sealed her 
promise with a warm, fervent kiss. There, 
Floyd, you have it. I am still single. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


11 


“Wadna Virden is the daughter of the 
woman who broke my heart and made this 
world for me a place wherein to revel in 
stocks and bonds, my only pleasure, making 
money and calculating on its increase an- 
nually. Looking forward to the time 
when I might die and leave it all to my 
nephews. 

“In Clayton Melrose I am disappointed. 
He is a spendthrift, a gambler, I believe, 
and I don’t think of all the fortune he in- 
herited from my sister’s husband he can 
show a cash balance of ten thousand dol- 
lars. Therefore, Floyd, my. hopes center 
in you. So it is not surprising that the 
mention of this name in so prominent a 
connection with your own and mine would 
tend to open up the old sore. 

“You no doubt love her truly, but does 
she return your love? Ha, that’s the 
question. If she does will she remain true 
to you? Ah, Floyd, look well to that. If 
only to please a whim of mine I ask you to 
go to Manila on this business without see- 
ing her. If she loves you truly and is a 
true woman she will still love you when 
you return. Write her if you wish, an- 


12 A DANGEROUS MISSION 

nouncing your departure, but put no foolish- 
ness in your letter. Will you do this, 
Floyd?” 

“Your kindness to me, your generosity, 
Uncle, is worth any sacrifice I could make. 
Besides, your argument is sound. Yes, I 
will do as you say.” 

“Thanks Floyd, thanks ! Now to busi- 
ness.” He reached into a drawer and pulled 
out a number of papers and handed them 
to his nephew, saying: “This is your pass- 
port, and an introduction to General Otis, 
Admiral Dewey, and others,secured through 
the War Department. My instructions 
are : first make Aguinaldo’s acquaintance. 
You will find this indispensable ; then go 
over the island thoroughly. Keep your 
eyes open and investigate. Your draft 
drawn on the Banco Espanol Filipino will be 
honored for any amount, for I trust to your 
good sense not to abuse the privilege. I 
do not expect you to learn the things I 
want to know without money, so don’t be 
miserly either. There, I guess that’s all, 
Floyd. Except that in order to catch the 
boat that leaves New York Saturday you 
will have to start to-morrow morning. Do 
you think you can start so soon?” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


13 


‘‘Yes, I will leave at ten-thirty to-mor- 
row.” 

“Very well, my boy, I feel sure of your 
success.” The two men arose and putting 
on their overcoats and hats were just 
in the act of passing out of the office, when 
a noise as of a heavy body stumbling and 
falling to the floor directly outside of the 
ofllce door startled them. Then there was 
a scrambling and the next moment the 
street door closed with a loud slam. Floyd 
stood for a second gazing at his uncle, then 
with a bound he opened the door and 
rushed out, followed by the other. They 
found the street door, which was always 
left unlocked, closed and the lock sprung, 
which delayed them a moment, and when 
Floyd reached the street there was no one 
in sight. 

“Well boy, what do you think of that,” 
said the old man, very much annoyed. 

“Give it up. Uncle, unless it was some 
street waif who ran in there out of the 
cold, not knowing we were inside, and 
finding his mistake got out.” 

“No sir, boy! I’m being shadowed.” 

“Shadowed!” echoed Floyd. 


14 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“Yes sir, shadowed. I have stumbled 
over a man several times right at my own 
door lately. They want to know my plans. 
The (iause of my success, or else — well, nev- 
er mind, I am glad it’s settled for you to 
go, and the sooner the better. Now Floyd, 
boy, take care of yourself, you are my only 
hope. Don’t run into danger over there. 
Keep your eyes open, and God bless you. 
Good-bye.” The old man’s voice trembled 
a little as he held out his hand to his 
nephew and turned away his head to hide 
a tear. 

Floyd pressed his hand warmly,, and they 
separated, Heafford Vandercook, capita- 
list, going to his handsome residence to 
stay awake, all night perhaps, pondering 
over what he had done, and mayhap re- 
proaching himself a little for doing it; but 
it was now too late to turn back. Floyd 
going to the hotel to pack up ready for 
the start on the morrow. 


CHAPTER II. 


Clayton Melrose was on the verge of fi- 
nancial ruin. Nearly all of the immense 
fortune he received at his father’s death 
was spent, either at the Board of Trade or 
at the gaming table. The fortune 'he had 
received had proved his ruin. He was 
about Floyd Yandercook’s age, was tall 
and handsome. Everyone supposed he was 
rich, which in part accounted for his pop- 
ularity. 

He entertained a bitter hatred for his 
cousin, and this feeling was intensified by 
the knowledge that some day Floyd would 
inherit the millions of Heafford Vaiider- 
cook. 

He knew that Floyd loved Wadna Yir- 
den, and he thought he detected in the 
manner of the young lady a sure sign that 
she returned Floyd’s love. 

The thought only served to strengthen 
his hatred for his cousin, for he hoped to 
win her for a bride himself. In this he 


16 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


was seconded by her father, who made no 
secret of his admiration for Clayton. 

When Floyd entered the office of his 
uncle he did not dream that he was being 
followed. But Clayton Melrose had decid- 
ed that Floyd was a stumbling block in his 
pathway to ruin, so he determined to brush 
him aside by any means that suggested it- 
self as the safest and surest. Therefore as 
Floyd entered the office he was followed 
noiselessly by his cousin who took up his 
station just outside the door. He over- 
heard the conversation as described in the 
previous chapter, and came very nearly be- 
ing discovered by the act of falling when 
hurrying from the door. 

Even before he hurriedly left the build- 
ing his mind was made up as to what 
course he would pursue. He thought the 
time had come for him to win fortune and 
bride by one master stroke. 

He hurried across to Clark Street, and 
pulling his slouch hat farther down over 
his eyes, and turning his collar up around 
his ears he hastened southward. Further 
and further he went down the line of filth 
and licensed prostitution, looking neither 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


17 


to the right nor to the left until he reached 
a place near the Twelfth Street viaduct. 
Here he entered, and approaching the bar- 
tender, whispered a few words in his ear, 
and passed into a stall where he was joined 
presently by a little yellow-faced man 
about forty years old, who, as he entered, 
took off his cap and bowed low, saying : 
“Did not expect Senior this night. What 
is it, something not gone well? What? — ” 

“Ha, Leudesso, here you are. Does this 
look as if things were not going right?” 
pointing to the bottle of wine near his 
elbow. 

“Oh! I see the Senior do have good 
success ; that more me pleased, so I drink 
me some wine to your health. Senior.” 

“Drink ahead, drink yourself blind if 
you wish, if you can drink and listen at 
the same time. Do you want to be rich, 
you old pirate? Of course you do. The 
time has come to act.” 

“Senior says act, act, all time. But how 
act when I can hear no rattle, no music 
down here when I walk, when I can feel no 
pesos there when I push my hand down in 
my pocket. You American queer fellows.” 


18 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“Well, all that is changed now, Leudes- 
80. I'm not broke. You were saying last 
night that you wanted to go back to Ma- 
nila. Have you changed your mind?” At 
this question the Filipino’s eyes sparkled. 

“Oh Senior, you must not talk like this 
if you don’t mean truth. Over there they 
soon get country free. If I go back I get 
office, be Chief. Have many men and 
plenty money. What you say. Senior Mel- 
rose?” 

“You are to start to-morrow morning. 
You know who I mean when I tell you he 
is going there. He must never return, you 
understand. You will be a captain or 
something, so you must see to it that he 
stays in the Philippines. He is going there 
to investigate for his uncle. If he stays 
there and I get proof of his death I will 
get a wife, and another fortune. He has 
letters to Otis and Dewey, and hopes to get 
an audience with Aguinaldo. Now suppose 
Aguinaldo was given to understand that 
he was a spy in the pay of the United 
States, what would become of him?” 

“Senior very smart. Aguinaldo would 
tell officer to watch, and when the time 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


19 


comes put him in prison. Have trial and 
American would be shot.” 

“And no one ever know how it hap- 
pened, eh?” 

“Oh yes, Senior, Leudesso would know.” 

“Of course, I expect that, but no one in 
this country would be any wiser, would 
they?” 

“No, unless I should happen to talk 
when I sleep,” said the yellow-faced rascal 
slyly. 

“I’ll pay you for staying awake then. 
Now Leudesso, I leave it all to you. Gain 
his confidence. Bring me back proof of his 
death or proof that we will never see him 
again, and I will give you thirty thousand 
dollars. I will give you enough to-night 
for your expenses and more, and when the 
job is finished, the remainder. What do 
you say?” 

“I only wait for tomorrow. Senior, then 
I will start. When I come back I expect 
to see you with black cloth on your hat 
and money plenty to burn, as you Amer- 
icans say it.” 

Money and jealousy ! These two subtle 
fiends carnate go hand in hand. Where 


20 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


one is found you are sure to find the other 
lurking near to fill up some vacant place 
in the mind of some poor, misguided soul 
that the other lias left vacant. If we could 
only see the souls of the murdered, whose 
death can be traced directly to both of 
these evils, pass before us in review, what 
an army there would be. What a terrible 
sight would meet our gaze. Old and young 
alike have been claimed as victims by 
these two unmerciful elements in the make- 
up of mankind. Yet it would seem that 
human nature is incapable of learning the 
lesson that is daily presented to our view 
by the evils of money and jealousy. We 
read of a case of cold-blooded murder on 
account of jealousy or for money. We 
throw up our hands in horror, close our 
oyes to the sight, and the next minute 
we find ourselves craving for riches and 
power, or the demon of jealousy in our 
hearts calling forth for vengeance. 

Had Clayton Melrose remained poor, or 
had the money he inherited been given him 
as he needed it, there is no doubt but that 
he would have grown up a good man, and 
the money now spent in sin and riotous 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


21 


living would have proved a blessing to 
himself and to those with w^hom he came 
in contact, but, fate, if you will allow the 
expression, willed otherwise. He came in 
possession of a fortune to be used as he 
saw fit, and now in early manhood we find 
him a moral wreck ; fortune gone, and his 
friends only awaiting the knowledge, 
before taking their leave. What can he 
do to make an honest living after being 
used to all the luxuries that money af- 
forded. He is totally unfit for business ; 
he will not work at menial labor; what can 
he do? 

He has answered the question himself. He 
will win the fortune of his uncle. He will 
win by any means the hand of Wadna Vir- 
den in marriage, thereby making fortune 
doubly sure. 

After having arranged details with the 
Filipino, the two men separated. When 
once outside Clayton Melrose bethought 
himself to take a stroll around to Floyd’s 
rooms. He could afford to be pleasant to 
his cousin for one evening, after having 
arranged plans that he hoped would for- 
ever remove his cousin from his sight. 


22 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Floyd was writing a letter to Miss Vir- 
den when he heard a knock. Imagine his 
surprise when Clayton Melrose, all smiles, 
stepped into the room, with outstretched 
hand, saying : “Floyd, old fellow, I’m tired 
of this; what’s the use of our being at en- 
mity? Think of cousins \ and except 
uncle we are the only ones of either family 
left.” 

“Ah, Clayton old fellow,” said Floyd, 
clasping the outstretched hand, “you voice 
my sentiments exactly. Nothing can give 
me more pleasure than to wipe out all of 
the old imaginary feeling. I have been 
lonesome without you, and I was just 
thinking when you knocked that it would 
be far more pleasant for me, and make my 
task less hard if I could go away knowing 
that you held no grudge toward me.” 
Then noticing the assumed look of surprise 
on Melrose’s face he continued: “True, you, 
do not know. I am off in the morning on 
a long journey.” 

“Why Floyd, what’s up? I hope you 
have had no words with uncle? I thought 
you and he got along nicely.” 

“So we do. But you know uncle. He has 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


23 


sent me to the Philippines to look over the 
prospects for investing some of his money.” 

“Surely you are not crying about that, 
are you? He has bestowed a great honor 
on you. I consider you very lucky.” 

“Well, I appreciate the honor and all 
that, but I feel as if all is not going to be 
right. I cannot account for the feeling; 
perhaps it is on account of what uncle told 
me to-night. He claims he is being shad- 
owed, and seems to feel badly about it. 
Then, then, — ” 

“Then, Floyd, there’s Wadna, eh? I 
suppose you fixed it with her so that you 
are sure of her when you return, eh?” 

“Not I, Clayton. She is as free as the 
air, but I would be telling a falsehood if I 
said I had no hopes in that direction. If 
when I return she has not ceased to think of 
me, I will do all 1 can to win her, for cousin, 
I do not mind telling you, I do love her.” 

“Well, you do not intend to leave without 
seeing her.” 

“That’s about the size of it, Clayton, but 
I’ve written a note to her which I’m going 
to ask you to post for me.” 

“Which I’ll be glad to do. If the old 


24 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


man wasn’t such an old crank and pre- 
judiced against me I would try and help 
him while you are away, which, now we 
have concluded to live like two civilized 
men, I hope won’t be for long.” 

“I don’t suppose I can be back much 
before a year, but I will think of this even- 
ing many a time away out there among 
strangers.” 

“And I here will think of it too, Floyd, 
and of you, but I’ll say good-bye, for you 
will need some rest. Give old Aguinaldo 
my regards.” 

Thus they parted, Clayton Melrose well 
pleased with the meeting, thinking how 
easy after all it would be to win a fortune 
by disposing of his over trustful cousin. 

After he had gone Floyd sat for some 
time buried in deep thought. “I wonder,”he 
mused,“what brought Cousin Clayton up to 
see me. How pleasant he can be when he 
chooses, but I don’t believe he meant a 
word of it. If he did he would not have 
waited so long. There is something back 
of it, whether for mischief or good I don’t 
know, but I’ll just drop uncle a line about 
it.” After this task was finished he retired 
for a much needed rest. 


CHAPTER III. 


As Floyd boarded the steamer that was 
to carry him thousands of miles away from 
country and acquaintances, on a mission 
for which he could not help but feel he 
was disqualified, a feeling of unutterable 
loneliness, a sort of homesickness, came 
over him. He could not help feeling that 
his uncle had sent him on the mission for 
some other reason than that explained to 
him; what it was he could not conjecture. 
He scanned the faces of his fellow passen- 
gers closely, as if looking for the reason 
there, but they only returned the stare in 
a questioning way, so he went to his state- 
room, and lying down fell fast asleep. 
When he awoke all was still save for the 
rhythmical throbbing and beating of the 
of the ship’s engines. He wondered for a 
moment where he was, but a sudden pitch- 
ing motion of the ship that brought the 
end of his berth in contact with his head, 
brought him to a realization of his sur- 
25 


26 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


roundings. He crawled wearily from his 
berth and made his way as best he could 
to the deck, for he felt the unmistakable 
signs of seasickness creeping over him. 
The night was clear but for all that a 
heavy swell was on, and the ship rolled and 
pitched continuously. It would rise high 
on the crest of a billow, then like an angry 
bird, would plunge swiftly down into the 
next, throwing the briny spray high on 
either side. Floyd gazed longingly astern 
for sight of land but nothing met his gaze 
but the never ending roll of white crested 
waves rushing madly on in each other’s 
wake, and where one would sink down, 
another seemingly larger and more angry 
than the first would rise up in its place. 

While standing gazing out upon the 
waste of waters he felt a touch on his arm, 
and a soft velvety voice with a very for- 
eign accent said: “The Senior is not used 
to the water I see.” 

Floyd turned and saw standing by his 
'side the Filipino, Leudesso. He wore a suit 
of black and looked like some well to do 
foreigner returning to his native land; but 
Floyd was in no mood to take kindly to 
the stranger’s remarks and replied: 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


27 


“I don’t believe, sir, I have the honor of 
your acquaintance; therefore I fail to see 
how the question of my being used to the 
water can interest you. I admit, however, 
that I am not enjoying this ‘man in the 
blanket process of tossing.’ ” 

“Your pardon, Senior, I beg, but I was 
about to add that if you would keep well 
you should not gaze out at the rushing 
sea. I have travelled plenty and that much 
have I learned.” 

Floyd felt somewhat abashed by the 
quiet, dignified answer, and half sorry for 
his roughness, and turning to make reply 
found that his companion had disappeared. 
Well here was something at least to occupy 
his mind. He had made a fool of himself 
by his hasty remarks and had learned to 
keep his eyes off the water if he would 
avoid seasickness,but who was the foreigner 
who had interested himself in his behalf. 
He turned to go back to his room and at 
the door he encountered the little foreigner 
again who said half apologetically: “Your 
pardon again. Senior, if you are sick go as 
far below as you may. There the motion 
of the ship you will find is less violent. 


28 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


You see I am not angry at what you said 
to me for I know what the sea sick do with 
you. You are travelling alone?” 

‘Yes,” said Floyd, “and as you seem to 
know, this is my first voyage on the ocean. 
My name is Floyd Vandercook, of Chicago. 
And yours?” 

“Jose Leudesso, Bolinao, Island of Luzon, 
Philippines.” 

As can be imagined Floyd was surprised 
at hearing this, and was pleased as well, 
for here a chance presented itself for find- 
ing out from one familiar with the Islands, 
what he could expect to find there. The 
Filipino was quick to note his advantage, 
and his little brown eyes snapped with sat- 
isfaction when Floyd said: 

“Well, Mr. Leudesso, I ask your pardon 
for my rudeness of a few minutes ago, and 
I will confess that I am well pleased to 
make your acquaintance, for the Philip- 
pines is my own destination, and you no 
doubt can give me much useful information 
about the Islands during our voyage.” 

“Ah, you Americans are very funny. 
One minute you not speak, the next min- 
ute you want to be good friends. Ha, Sen- 
ior, is it not so?” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


29 


“We Americans, Mr. Leudesso, are men 
born under a free flag; our moods, our 
likes, our dislikes are things which we 
choose for ourselves, and we do not want 
any man’s friendship bad enough to beg for 
it, be he King, Crown Prince or what not; 
our minds are our own property. We 
speak as we feel and there is no one to say 
us nay; but come to my cabin. No doubt 
we can be of service to each other in pass- 
ing the time.” 

Leudesso followed him and as Floyd 
gazed at him under the full glare of the 
electric light he was not preposessed by the 
fellow’s personal appearance. His little 
steely brown eyes roved about the room, 
rarely m+^eting those of his companion in a 
frank look, and Floyd knew by the fellow’s 
hands that he was not traveling for pleas- 
ure. His clothes, which were fairly good, 
bore the unmistakable signs of “hand-me- 
down,” and Floyd could not help noticing 
that the man seemed uncomfortable in 
them, and wondered what chance had 
thrown him in his pathway. He decided to 
cultivate the fellow’s acquaintance, think- 
ing he might become useful to him after 


30 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


their arrival. After inviting him to a 
chair Floyd said: 

“Yon are not surprised that my destina- 
tion happens to he the same as yours.” 

“No, Senior, I am not surprised, but 
pleased. What an American .would do 
would not surprise me. You might say 
you were going to the moon, I would not 
be surprised. But Senior, the islands not 
a very good place for gentlemen like you 
just now. Badly tore up.” 

“It would make no difference to me, 
Leudesso, if they were on fire, I would go 
just the same.” 

“Ah, Senior Vandercook’s business must 
be important, eh?” 

“Yes, very; but what do you do over 
there, Leudesso, if I may ask?” 

“Sometimes soldier, sometimes business 
man.” 

“What kind of business do you follow?” 

“Well Senior, I know the Island of Lu- 
zon every foot, and when there is plenty 
of travel I am guide. Ha, that good pay- 
ing business. But that all gone now, so 
have to be soldier again,” said the cun- 
ning rascal with a resigned look and a 
sigh. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


31 


“Hum,” said Floyd, and sat for some 
seconds buried in thought. The little eyes 
of the Filipino watched him narrowly, and 
he waited impatiently for what he thought 
would come next, but he was disappointed, 
for instead of engaging him as a guide on 
the spot, Floyd turned the conversation on 
the people of the Philippines, their habits, 
occupation, etc., and after trying to thrust 
himself to the foreground again, without 
success, the Filipino took his leave, not at 
all pleased with the progress he had made. 

After he had gone Floyd turned the light 
of his thought on the fellow’s actions. He 
wondered why he had been singled out as 
an acquaintance by the yellow-skinned half- 
caste, when there remained such a number 
of other passengers. “I wonder if there is 
anything about my appearance that looks 
‘easy’,” he mused, “or is it a piece of good 
fortune? I will certainly need a guide when 
I am ready to start out. I would not think 
of going alone, and if, as he says, he is ac- 
quainted with every foot of the ground, w^hy 
is he not just the person I want? I’ll watch 
him, cultivate him, learn his disposition, 
and if he suits, why I’ll engage him.” So 


32 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


with these thoughts in mind Floyd watched, 
and studied the Filipino carefully and at 
last arrived at the conclusion that he 
would hire him. 

Leudesso became aware of Floyd’s pur- 
pose long before the journey to Port Said 
was finished, as evidenced by his mutter- 
ings, and grunts of satisfaction after each 
interview. 

‘‘Ah, I think I have the fine Senior now, 
I will be his guide after all, and earn the 
riches I have always wished for, and with 
them will come power. Aguinaldo will 
want my voice in his Council and at last I 
will be a great man. The Senior will find a 
Filipino prison not very comfortable, in 
one of the small inland towns, but he must 
never return to America to lecture on our 
country, and when once in our prison the 
jrest will be easy. Ha, Leudesso, you are 
in luck.” 

Thus all unconscious Floyd was being 
4rawn into the net of his merciless cousin, 
and giving himself into the power of the 
equally merciless yellow-skinned Filipino. 

Ten days after the departure of Floyd, 
Heafford Yandercook received a cablegram 
announcing his safe arrival at Port Said. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


33 


On the same day a cablegram was handed 
Clayton Melrose, which read as follows : 

“All well. Am employed. Success is as- 
sured.” Signed “Leudesso.” 

As he read the message Melrose drew a 
deep sigh of satisfaction and mentally con- 
cluded to begin to play his cards. That 
evening found him at the Virden home con- 
versing with Mr. Virden. 

His dress was faultless, a heavy diamond 
stud adorned his immaculate shirt front 
while his fingers fairly blazed with the 
precious stones, and as Mr. Virden talked 
he glanced at them longingly, and thought 
how wealthy this young man must be to 
afford such luxuries, and he longed more 
than ever for the day to come when he 
would see his daughter the wife of this 
man. Therefore he listened very attentively 
as Melrose poured into his ear his love for 
his daughter. How, now that Floyd had 
gone away to be gone a year or more, he 
thought he might with her father’s help 
win her love and her hand. 

“But,” objected Mr. Virden, “Wadna 
is my only child, without a mother. I 
don’t feel as though I ought to dictate to her 


34 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


too strongly. I feel positive she thinks a 
great deal of young Vandercook.” 

“All the more reason, sir, why you should 
take a mother’s place and point out to her 
what you plainly think is her duty to you 
as well as herself. I speak knowingly 
when I say that Floyd will never receive 
a cent from Uncle Van. How can he sup- 
port Wadna in that comfort to which she 
is accustomed? As for myself, I am happy 
to say, I am independent.” 

“Of course, Clayton, you are right, I 
must look after her interests. I cer- 
tainly will help you all I can, but I warn 
you, Wadna is very positive in her likes 
and dislikes. I hope you will succeed, and 
all I can do I will do cheerfully in your 
behalf. Come as often as you like. The 
field is open to you, and outside of Van- 
dercook you have no rival.” 

A light step was now heard hurriedly 
approaching the door and a moment later 
Wadna burst through the doorway, all out 
of breath. She halted at the sight of Mel- 
rose and stood gazing from one to the 
other as if abashed at her impetuosity. 

Her dark hair was disheveled, her 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


35 


black eyes fairly snapped with suppressed 
excitement. Her beautiful face was full 
of anxiety, although her cheeks were rosy 
as the blush of a peach, caused partly by 
the fresh December air from which she 
had just emerged. Her graceful form was 
partly concealed by the long ulster from 
which she had in her hurry forgotten to 
divest herself. 

Melrose was fairly stunned by her beauty, 
as she stood there for a moment, and his 
gaze of admiration caused her to remember 
his presence. 

She laughed a little nervous laugh and 
said: “One would think I was a spirit, to 
see the way you two stare at me.” 

“Yes, Miss Wadna, I will confess I 
thought you the spirit of an angel at first,” 
said Melrose. 

“Ah, no doubt, Mr. Melrose, but I hope 
real angels have better control of their 
feelings than I, for I confess I am very 
much out of sorts. I was bent on giving 
papa a lecture when I spied you, so that 
accounts for my surprise.” 

“Wadna dear, what is the lecture 
about.?” inquired Mr. Virden. 


36 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“Well, I did intend to let it go for the 
present, but I have again changed my mind 
and now include Mr. Melrose.” 

“You flatter me, Miss Virden,” he said. 

“Ah, wait till I am through, before you 
give me credit for flattery, for I am indeed 
put out, and almost angry. Why is it, 
papa and Mr. Melrose, you did not tell me 
that Floyd had gone! You certainly knew 
he had gone, Mr. Melrose, for he is your 
first cousin.” 

“I do not take any blame on myself, 
Miss Wadna, for I consider Floyd the pro- 
per person to have told you,” said Melrose, 
glad of a chance to give his absent cousin 
this thrust. 

“I agree with Clayton,” said Mr. Vir- 
den. “It was clearly a case of neglect on 
his part.” 

“He no doubt forgot all about it,” said 
Melrose sarcastically. 

Wadna blushed crimson at these remarks 
and replied hotly, “Floyd did not forget, 
I know he did not. He left in a hurry and 
did not have the time to spare. In any 
■event, papa, I think you should have told 
me, to save me from the embarrassment of 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


37 


being told by those whom you know enjoy 
my discomfort.” 

“Floyd could have written to you from 
New York had he chosen to do so, dear.” 

“Yes,” said Melrose, “for Uncle received 
a note from him there. (He knew he lied.) 
Floyd means all right Miss Wadna, but 
how he could forget such a palpable duty 
is beyond me. I will not attempt to oflPer 
excuses for him as none is necessary.” 

“It is not of paramount importance after 
all,” said Wadna with dignity. “So let 
us dismiss the subject.” It was easy to 
say but Wadna found out it was not an easy 
thing to do, for no matter which way the 
conversation would turn thoughts of 
Floyd would creep into her head, and his 
handsome face and frank eyes were before 
her almost constantly. Although she said 
it was of no consequence, the thought of 
being treated so indilferently by him 
brought an angry blush to her face. She 
played and sang and her rippling laughter 
filled Melrose with secret joy, but after all 
she passed a very miserable evening 
and longed for the privacy of her own 
room to think it all over. She was 


38 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


glad when Melrose took his leave 
and she hardly knew it when she 
allowed him to hold her hand for a mo- 
ment ; her thoughts were traveling eastward 
to where the morning sun rushes up sud- 
denly from his place of hiding and pro- 
claims the birth of a new day. But she 
quickly drew her hand away when she felt 
Melrose’s lips reverently touch it. She was 
indignant but seemed to lack the power 
to say so. At last he was gone and as she 
heard his retreating steps going down the 
gravel walk she heaved a sigh of relief and 
flew to her room. What her thoughts were 
that night we leave our readers to guess. 
It was early dawn before she courted sleep 
and was carried away in his enchanting 
embrace. She was not down to breakfast 
but at tea she was in her accustomed 
place, the life and wit of a party of young 
friends. 

Time wore on, a month and a half had 
passed since Floyd went away. Melrose con- 
tinued to come regularly. Floyd’s name was 
never mentioned by Wadna, and her father 
and Melrose began to congratulate them- 
selves that she had put all thought of him 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


39 


away from her. Except for the cablegram to 
his uncle no word had come from him. 

Wadna’s manner toward Melrose became 
less constrained each day. She occasion- 
ally accompanied him to the theatre. She 
evinced no desire to avoid him, which 
pleased the two conspirators immensely. 

Thus matters stood when Mr. Virden 
and Melrose concluded that the time had 
come to risk a proposal. 

One evening when Wadna and her father 
were at tea, Mr. Virden said timidly : 
“Wadna, I expect Clayton this evening,and 
my dear, he will have something very im- 
portant to say to you.” Wadna looked up 
with a half scared look in her big, brown 
eyes and fixed, her gaze on her father, un- 
der which he winced, and he seemed to 
have found something very interesting in 
the bottom of his cup, for his eyes remained 
there for several seconds. 

“What can Clayton Melrose have to say 
to me that is so very important, father?” 
she asked anxiously. 

“I prefer to have him make it known to 
you himself. I don’t know that it should 
surprise you so very much, though, my dear. 


40 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


I can tell you this much, however, he loves 
you dearly, and I can say I respect him very 
much. Not only this Wadna, but my fi- 
nancial affairs are not very prosperous. 
Ill luck here and there has brought me to 
a condition where something has got to be 
done, or ruin will follow.” 

“Oh, father, is this really true?” cried 
Wadna almost in despair. 

“Yes Wadna, really true. I would that 
I could have kept this from you, but you 
would know it sooner or later and fore- 
warned is forearmed. Now my dear, pay 
close attention to w^hat I’m about to add. 
Clayton Melrose is rich, immensely rich, he 
has the means and can make any woman 
happy, and if her father happened to be in 
a tight place it w^ould tide him over ; there- 
fore my dear, when he comes this evening 
try to listen to what he wants to tell you, 
with a thought for your father’s welfare.” 

“Oh father, is there no other way out of 
this trouble?” 

“I fear this is my only hope,butI do not 
command you, my dear.” 

“I will try to be as kind to him as I can, 
father, but — but — father, has any news 


A DANGE ROUS MISSION 


41 


come from the Philippines lately? O father^ 
father, I am very miserable,” cried Wadna 
at last, resting her head in her hand and 
sobbing aloud. 

Virden was touched by her grief and in- 
wardly cursed Floyd Yandercook, but get- 
ting up and going to his daughter’s side 
he raised her hand and imprinted a kiss 
on her white brow, and said kindly : 
“Wadna, I had hoped that you had forgot- 
ten him. He is not worth a tear from your 
bright eyes. He does not return your love, 
if love you call it. No, not a word has 
been heard from him, not even by his un- 
cle, but he is using up the money deposited 
at Manila fast enough, so I am informed. 
He is an ingrate, has no character, and 
what’s worse has no prospects.” With this 
Yirden left the room. 

Wadna wandered about the house in a 
daze. What should she tell Melrose. She 
liked him very well, but the thought of 
marrying him chilled her to the very mar- 
row. Then the thought of financial ruin, 
her father’s business disgrace, their future 
after the shock was over, her father help- 
less and penniless in his old age, blotted 
out all else from her mind. 


42 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“What am I, ’’she exclaimed, “that I should 
stand in the pathway of my father’s suc- 
cess? I am forgotten by the one person on 
earth I love. My heart is bare and empty. 
If Clayton Melrose is willing to take this 
poor house of clay, in exchange for the 
happiness of my father, it is my duty to 
close the bargain. Ha! Ha!” she laughed 
harshly, “what a poor bargain he will have. 
A wife without love. Oh, Floyd, Floyd, 
could you but know my misery you would 
pity me at least. Then a pleading, earnest 
face passed before her gaze, a face she had 
looked upon in so many happy moments 
when she thought she was loved, a face 
filled with love, though unspoken. “Ah, 
Floyd,” she murmured, “I still believe you 
love me, and for the sake of old memories 
I will make my answer to-night conditional 
on your appearance, or a confession of love 
within a year, for I love you, I love you , 
I love you.” 


CHAPTER IV. 


Early one morning Floyd and Leudesso 
arrived at Hong Kong, China, where they 
waited four days for a passage to Manila. 
Each morning and evening Leudesso was 
sent out to the agencies of the steamship 
lines plying between these points to ascer- 
tain when they could expect to get a boat. 
Service was very irregular and nothing 
definite was learned. Floyd was becoming 
very anxious to get started, and Leudesso 
seemed none the less so, and urged on his 
employer the necessity of getting away 
from Hong Kong at the first opportunity, 
as the town harbored a great number of 
Filipinos, whose actions betrayed their 
suspicions of the two travelers. 

Floyd did not place much credit in what 
Leudesso told him regarding these suspi- 
cions until the evening of the third day 
when, on walking along the wide street, he 
became aware of being followed. He quick- 
ened his pace, but the man in his rear kept 
43 


44 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


the same distance ; try as he would, he 
could not shake his pursuer off. He crossed 
the street, entered a shop, made a small 
purchase, and when he emerged he saw the 
same solitary figure standing on the oppo- 
site corner waiting. Floyd became alarmed 
at this and started for his hotel ; still the 
shadow followed, still keeping the same 
respectful distance in his rear until in sight 
of the hotel where he disappeared. Leu- 
desso was there to meet him, and his 
olive face wore an anxious expression. 

“Senior, it is better we leave Hong Kong 
tomorrow,” said he, not waiting for Floyd 
to speak. 

“ ’Tis all very well to say it is better 
that we leave, but how, Leudesso? And 
why do you Inok so anxious?” 

“Ah, Senior Floyd, the Filipino is sus- 
picious. They have found out that you 
are going to Luzon, and they wonder, think, 
and mistrust.” 

“How do you know this?” 

“I just got back from steam-ship office; 
on the way I met several Filipino, they 
knew I was with you, they stopped me, and 
tried to take me into a place to drink. 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


46 


Leudesso would not go, Senior. Then they 
asked about you, who you were, where 
you were going, but Leudesso knew noth- 
ing, Senior. But we must go at once, or 
they will make it very unpleasant for us.” 

“I suppose we can purchase a balloon 
here in Hong Kong, or possibly we might 
swim or fly from here to Manila. If none 
of these things are possible, Leudesso, I 
ask again, how are we to get out of this 
miscellaneous gathering of humanity.^” 

There was a baleful gleam in the little 
brown eyes for a moment w^hen Leudesso 
said cautiously : ‘‘There is a way. Senior ; I 
have had an offer of passage to Manila 
bnt have not considered it.” 

“Well, what is it? Most anything is 
preferable to staying here where one can’t 
walk the streets without being followed by 
someone.” 

“Senior is no doubt aware that smug- 
glers carry on trade with the Filipinos 
from this and other ports. Ha, plenty 
smugglers. Senior. Provisions, and some- 
times guns and ammunition.” 

“I have heard of such things; but Leu- 
desso, come to the point, what about it?” 


46 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“We may go to Manila on one of these 
craft, Senior, if we will.” 

“What kind of craft is it?” 

“Ha, Senior Floyd, craft is alright. 
Good cabin, good table, boat about eight 
hundred tons, steam, too. Senior.” 

“When do they leave port?” 

“Next sunset. Senior.” 

“We will go on that, Leudesso, if no 
other chance presents itself. I will leave 
the details to you. If you can engage 
passage on some other steamer do so; if not 
do not neglect to close a bargain with the 
captain of the smuggler.” 

If Floyd had been a little more suspiciou& 
he would have noticed the look of exulta- 
tion on the yellow face of his guide, but 
he did not, so at once retired, for he felt 
the need of rest badly, for his brain was 
tired and his mind was torn by conflicting 
emotions. 

After he had gone, Leudesso went to a 
door overlooking the street and whistled 
softly; a moment later he was joined by 
two other men as evil looking as himself. 
The trio repaired to an inner room and 
Leudesso ordering drinks, they sat down 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


47 


and conversed in low tones. The word 
“spy” and “American” soon revealed the 
subject of their conversation. 

“He is a spy sent to our country to find 
out our strength,” said Leudesso in the 
Filipino language. “When once on board 
the Pride of Samar, we will have him for 
good. We will turn him over to the tender 
mercies of Carijello, who knows how to 
treat such cases.” “And,” said the third, 
“we will all be handsomely rewarded for 
bagging such game.” 

“My friends,” said Leudesso quickly, 
“he must never see the light of our land; 
that would be too dangerous.” 

“Yes, but our captain will not consent 
to try the case as he has no authority.” 

“Then we must try the case for him, my 
friends.” 

“We are not murderers, sir,” said the 
men together. 

“Ha, ha,” laughed Leudesso incredu- 
lously, “who talks of murder? This man is 
a spy. We are in the service of our coun- 
try. To rid our country of an enemy is 
not murder, simply a means of justice.” 

“True,” answered one of the men, “we 


48 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


are soldiers, but we have no authority to 
judge, much less to execute without judg- 
ment.” 

“Ah, I see,” said Leudesso, with a dark 
scowl, “you are soldiers but are willing to 
allow a spy to enter your country and 
trust to the judges to sentence him. Why, 
comrades, he is almost sure to escape us if 
he sets foot on Luzon. He has money and 
letters of credit and can buy all of our 
judges over if money will do it.” 

“Come,” said one of the men, banter- 
ingly; “let us not deceive ourselves into 
being patriots. My friend is uncommonly 
interested in disposing of the Americano 
where he knows the attempt will be suc- 
cessful. Senior Leudesso, you care no more 
for our country than we do.” 

“Cursey our impudence,” cried Leudesso, 
drawing the ever ready knife, “how dare 
you insult me?” 

“Keep your temper. Senior,” said the 
former speaker, drawing a revolver and 
pointing it at the angry Leudesso. “Ha, 
Senior , you are hasty. Do not let us 
quarrel, just because I have discovered 
your secret. No doubt you have your 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


49 


price. Is it not so? How many pesetas do 
you get, Senior Leudesso? Ah, gold is a 
mighty weapon in these troubled times, 
Senior. All patriots worship at her shrine. 
We, Senior, are very religious.” 

‘‘Ah, my friend, I see you want money 
and you shall have it. Why did you not 
come to the point?” 

“We were waiting for you. Senior.” 

“Very well, now we have arrived, let us 
waste no more time. Do you agree with 
me that the spy must die before he reaches 
the Philippines?” 

“We think it best for our country’s good. 
Senior.” 

“Then you will aid me in carrying out 
this verdict?” 

“Si Senior, we are your servants, and 
thereby the servants of our own downtrod- 
den, blood sprinkled Island.” 

“Tis well. Senior, to-morrow at sunset 
we will be on board the Pride of Samar. 
Where is her destination?” 

“Ququegabao, up the river Grande de 
Cagayan.” 

“Why, your captain told me he was 
bound for Manila.” 


50 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“Our captain is no fool, he does not wish 
our cargo of rifles and ammunition to fall 
into the hands of that fired evil of Dewey. 
So we are going to enter the Island on 
the North and sail up the river to Qugue- 
gabao, where we will be met by at least one 
thousand soldiers.” 

“Then Aguinaldo intends to fight the 
Americans?” 

“Ha Senior, we will whip them as we 
have the cursed Spaniards.” 

“Success to our cause, if it will only 
bring us riches. Eh, comrades! good- 
night.” 

“We will be on hand at set of sun to-mor- 
row.” The two Filipinos passed out and 
Leudesso refreshed himself at the bar be- 
fore retiring. As he passed Floyd’s door 
a fiendish thought came into his head. He 
gently turned the knob and pushed ; the 
door swung open. Floyd in his troubled 
state had forgotten to lock it. Leudesso 
grasping the handle of his keen edged 
knife stepped silently into the room. Floyd 
lay sleeping peacefully. The Filipino with 
a devilish light in his eyes, approached the 
the bed and gazed at the sleeper. “Ah, how 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


51 


easy it would be ; it would save me several 
hundred pesetas, if I did it now, but there 
is the cursed English Consul near and I 
would be suspected. It is wiser to wait. 
Yes I will wait. What a flimsy barrier be- 
tween m^ and thirty thousand good Amer- 
ican dollars. But I can wait. The South 
China Sea tells no tales. Ah Leudesso, 
you are lucky.” 

‘‘Lucky, Leudesso, did you say?” said 
Floyd sleepily. Then for the first time the 
Filipino realized that some of his thoughts 
had been spoken. He gazed at Floyd for 
a second and said: “Yes, Senior, I said it 
was lucky that I came and found your door 
unlocked instead of one of the curious 
Filipinos. You would have very soon been 
murdered.” 

“Well, well, did I do such a foolish thing 
as that? But I was so tired in mind and 
body I wonder I even closed the door or 
undressed. Thank you for waking me up.” 
The yellow skinned rascal grinned, and 
glided with a noiseless motion from the 
room. 

Floyd locked the door after him and 
drew a sigh of relief, he wondered what 


52 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


had been the fellow’s real motive in coming 
into his room so quietly, and looked to his 
Valuables to see if they were safe. He 
found everything as he had left them, and 
again retired wondering how Leudesso had 
become so intoxicated in so short a time. 
Try as he would he (jould not sleep. Find- 
ing the half-drunk Filipino in his room 
nettled him more than he allowed Leudesso 
to think. At last he got up, dressed him- 
self, and wrote a letter to his uncle and 
smoked a pipe. After that he felt much 
relieved and sat thinking of friends and 
home, of Wadna, and what she would 
think of the brief note he had mailed her. 
“Mailed, ”he exclaimed almost aloud, “why, 
I gave it to Clayton to post; what a fool 
trick; it will probably lay in his pocket for 
months. With these thoughts in his mind 
he fell asleep in his chair and was startled 
by pounding on his door and someone call- 
ing. He started up and was surprised to 
find the eastern sun shining into his room. 
He recognized the voice as that of Leu- 
desso and surprised that worthy by go- 
ing to the door fully dressed, and demand- 
ing what the unearthly noise was about. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


53 


‘‘Ah, Senior Floyd, I thought you were 
sleeping. I have called loudly for some 
time, here I see you dressed. Good, I have 
already been to the offices. No vessel to- 
day, Senior.” 

Floyd’s jaw dropped at this, for he did 
not like the idea of crossing the China Sea 
in the smuggler, and had hoped against 
hope, that another boat would sail. Lue- 
desso noticed this, and going down into 
one of his pockets he drew forth a small 
hand bill and handed it to Floyd, who took 
it and stared blankly at the letters printed 
in an unknown language. 

“What is this, Leudesso?” he demanded 
sharply, “I do not understand any foreign 
language except German.” 

“True, Senior, I forgot. Shall I read it?” 

“Yes, for heaven’s sake, read it. What 
are you so mysterious about? I’m no boy.’ 

“No, Senior, true you are a man.’ This 
says Tt has become known that a spy 
from America is in hiding in this city, 
awaiting an opportunity to embark for 
Luzon or one of the other Islands of the 
Philippines. All friends of the Republic 
of Filipino are warned against this man. 


54 A DANGEROUS MISSION 

who, if caught will be treated as a spy.’ 
Discription is as follows:” Leudesso stopped 
and looked into Floyd’s face to note the 
effect. He saw nothing but a faint smile. 

“Well, Leudesso, who does it de- 
scribe?” 

“Ah, Senior Floyd, you take it cool. It 
describes you sir, exactly. Your life is in 
danger here, sir. So I took the liberty of 
having your luggage placed on board the 
Pride of Samar, which will leave in one 
hour, instead of evening, sir. Thanks to 
the captain’s kindness.” 

“It seems to me, Leudesso, that you are 
altogether too zealous, your actions are 
enough to create suspicion in the minds of 
these ignorant cut-throats. I have half a 
notion to stay in Hong Kong and see what 
they will do. To use Chicago slang they 
‘make me tired.’ ” 

“You are your own employer. Senior, 
you know what you will do,” he added with 
an air of “I wash my hands of the conse- 
quences. Leudesso has done his duty.” 

“I am anxious to get back to America, 
so the sooner I get to the Philippines the 
sooner I will get back. Were it not for 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


55 


this, Leudesso, I would tell you and the 
whole Philippine race to go to the devil.” 

Leudesso gazed at him in speechless sur- 
prise; this was a new side to his intended 
victim’s character. As he turned aside he 
thought that after all, the- American might 
prove more than a match for him, and he 
decided to hurry the matter to a climax as 
soon as they were well under way, but be- 
fore leaving the room he managed to con- 
ceal Floyd’s letter on his person. 

In half an hour Floyd, accompanied by 
Luedesso were being driven to the wharf. 
As the carriage passed along Floyd readily 
recognized the numerous crowds gathered 
along the route as Filipinos. He kept 
back from the window as far as possible, 
but could see the suspicious looks cast in 
their direction. As they approached nearer 
the dock the crowd increased, and at last 
Floyd’s heart gave a great throb. He 
grasped his revolver firmly, for the horses 
were stopped, and a howling mob now en- 
closed the carriage on all sides. This was 
more than even Leudesso had reckoned on, 
and before Floyd knew it Leudesso had 
opened the door, and was talking to the ex- 


66 A DANGEEOUS MISSION 

cited crowd. Floyd did not know what he 
said to them but whatever it was it had a 
good effect, for the crowd dispersed and the 
carriage resumed its journey and was mo~ 
lested no more. 

As soon as they were on board, the Pride 
of Samar weighed anchor and steamed 
away, and from that moment Leudesso’s 
manner toward Floyd was changed. In- 
stead of the meekness of a servant, he as- 
sumed the air of an overseer, and after 
having presented Floyd to the captain, and 
seeing that this intended victim was safe 
in a cabin near the captain’s, he kept out 
of his sight. Floyd, going on deck two 
hours later noticed all his luggage in a 
promiscuous heap near the gangway. He 
called Leudesso and asked him to bring his 
trunk and grips to his cabin. Leudesso 
approached with a sullen look, and said : 
“Senior Floyd presumes too much on good 
nature, my good nature is playing out; 
Senior wants exercise. Senior can roll h is 
own trunks.” 

Floyd was at a loss to understand this 
sudden change in the Filipino’s manner, 
but it angered him not a little, therefore 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


67 


he hardly intended to say what he found 
himself saying: “Leudesso, I command 
you to do as I bid you.*’ 

‘‘Ha! So Senior commands, so Senior 
Floyd, the American spy, commands Jose 
Leudesso, a former captain in the Filipino 
army. He commands, you hear.” 

By this time Floyd was furious. The 
insolent bearing and insulting words of 
the Filipino angered him beyond control, 
and before he thought of the serious con- 
sequences of his act, he struck the modern 
Judas a stunning blow that felled him to 
the deck, exclaiming as he did so : “Take 
that, yoa ignorant dog.” 

Leudesso was on his feet in an instant, 
his eyes blazing with hatred and resent- 
ment, and drawing a long knife from some- 
where beneath his loose jacket he made a 
lunge at Floyd, who dodged back just in 
time to avoid a death thrust over the heart, 
and drawing his revolver he pointed it at 
the Filipino’s head, and waited for another 
attack. 

At this moment he was siezed from be- 
hind by two pairs of brawny arms, and 
his revolver was knocked from his hand 
and went rolling along the deck. 


68 A DANGEROUS MISSION 

Leudesso with murder in his eye was 
about to plunge the long knife into his 
body when a commanding voice arrested 
his arm. 


CHAPTER VI. 


Clayton Melrose was dressed in the very 
latest, from the glossy tile adorning his 
not unshapely head, to the neat patent 
leathers incasing his feet, everything was 
the best, and fit him to perfection. He 
felt satisfied. Why shouldn’t he? He felt 
sure of receiving a favorable answer from 
Wadna to-night, and he had partly made up 
with his uncle, who actually wished him 
success. Of course all this was at the ex- 
pense of the absent Floyd, but what mat- 
tered it ! Floyd would never return, he 
felt sure of that. Nothing was surer than 
that Uncle Van would eventually take him 
to his arms to fill the vacancy caused by 
Floyd’s unworthiness? It would be easy 
to close Leudesso’s mouth with money (of 
which he would soon have plenty) when 
that worthy returned, and if money would 
not close it, why what was easier than to 
silence him forever? 

So Clayton Melrose felt unusually gay as 
59 


60 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


as he rang the bell at the Virden mansion, 
and was admitted into the well furnished 
parlor. 

All at once he stopped, dived a hand 
down into an inner pocket with breathless 
haste, and drew a deep sigh of relief. 
What he wanted was there, and the cloud 
that appeared on his brow for a second 
vanished as a faint rustle of paper reached 
his ear. 

He was becoming annoyed at being left 
alone so long, when the faint strains of 
distant music and a sweet, plaintive voice 
singing these words.came floating in to him 
from some room adjoining. The voice was 
full of sadness, and the words being sung 
told their own story of hopeless love : 


“Far, far out on the billows high, 

My thoughts are soaring to-day, 

To far beyond the ocean’s tide 

Where my love was carried away. 

Now down in a cavern of the ocean’s bed. 
Now mounting a white-crested wave. 
Now groping thro’ wrecks, for a face ’mong 
the dead 

That had found such a lonely grave. 

The soul of the love that was left on my breast, 
Goes wearily day after day. 

It will not cease its sacred quest, 

Till this life shall have passed away.” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


61 


Melrose softly opened the door to the 
drawing room, and stood for a moment gaz- 
ing with an angry scowl at what he saw. 

There, seated in a low' chair, her white, 
slender fingers absently touching the 
strings of a guitar, he saw Wadna; her 
shapely head w'as bent forward in a listen- 
ing attitude as if she half expected to hear 
a whispered answer to the melancholy lines 
she was singing. 

Melrose knew for w'hom these words 
w'ere intended, and chuckled as he thought 
that ere this Floyd’s face could be found 
somewhere hid away in an ocean cavern, 
or looking out from under some ancient 
piece of wreckage. 

As Wadna concluded the last lines, the 
guitar slid from her lap and fell to the 
floor with a ring. Still she did not move, 
her hands were clasped and lay listlessly in 
her lap before her. 

Melrose retreated into the parlor, and 
coughed gently, thinking to attract her 
attention. Even he was not so hardened 
that he could find it in him to break in 
upon the sad, sacred thoughts of the love 
shorn girl. He cursed his inability to 


62 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


usurp the place in her heart that Floyd 
even in death occupied. 

He heard the door open, and turning he 
met Wadna’s questioning gaze. 

“Your voice, Wadna, is charming, and 
coming from another room it was pecul- 
iarly sweet.” 

“Ah, Mr. Melrose, you compliment me, 
I hoped you had not heard me. Yes, no 
doubt distance lends enchantment to the 
ear.” 

“The words of the song would so indi- 
cate, Wadna, for I judge you were singing 
of the absent.” 

“I did not know you were in the house,” 
she said significantly, “the servant did not 
tell me.” 

“No, but you would hardly expect to 
see my face looking up at the soul of your 
love from a piece of wreckage in the 
bottom of the ocean. By the way, I don’t 
remember of ever hearing the words before ; 
where did you run across such a melancholy 
song?” 

“That is a song I heard mother sing, 
many, many years ago. She was always 
sad.” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


63 


‘‘Ah Wadna, I would give all I possessed 
in the world if I could occupy the place in . 
your heart that one not half so worthy 
holds.” 

“To whom do you refer Mr. Melrose?” 
said she coldly. 

“Please Wadna, do not look at me like 
that. I mean it for your good. Floyd is, 

I am sorry to say, unworthy such a love as 
yours.” 

‘T thick, Mr. Melrose, this subject was up 
not so very long ago. I have not professed 
love for Floyd to anyone, but as you seem 
to think I do love him, don’t you think you 
should regard my feelings a little?” 

“Ah, Wadna, give me the right not only 
to regard your feelings, but also to protect 
you from all harm, to watch over you for 
all time. You shall be my queen, your 
slightest wish shall be gratified, for oh 
Wadna, I love you.” He now took her 
trembling hand in his own. “I love you 
as no woman was ever loved, life is but a 
dreary existence out of your presence. 
Tell me, dearest, you love me ! Whisper a 
faint shadow of hope in my ear and I will 
be the happiest man in Christendom.” 


64 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Wadna by this time was trembling like 
an aspen. The final struggle was on. Her 
brain was in a vortex of uncertainty and 
conflicting thoughts. She withdrew the 
trembling hand he held, and steadied her- 
self against a chair. 

‘‘Clayton Melrose, you know not what 
you ask. I admire and respect you, but, 
you ask too much.” 

“For God’s sake, Wadna, do not make 
my life a wreck by a refusal. All I ask is 
that you become my wife.” 

“But what of the holy love that blesses 
and ennobles the sacred ties that bind man 
and woman forever?” . 

“You would love me some day, I would 
make you love me.” 

“Clayton Melrose, again I say you do 
not know what you ask. Listen, I love 
Floyd Vandercook, I shall always love him. 
Until I know for certain that he did not 
love me truly, I cannot say yes to the pro- 
posal you have so highly honored me with.” 

At last the time had come for Clayton 
Melrose to play his trump card, and hur- 
riedly thrusting a hand in his coat pocket 
he produced a small sheet of paper which 
he handed to Wadna, saying: 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


65 


“This may tell you, Wadna. It was 
picked up in Floyd’s room the morning 
after he left so suddenly, and has lain in a 
drawer in my uncle’s office until to-day. 
He gave it to me to hand to you this even- 
ing. I do not know what it contains, but 
I sincerely believe it will show conclusively 
that your love for Floyd is unworthily be- 
stowed.” 

She took it from him with a trembling 
hand. She prayed inwardly for strength 
to conceal from Melrose’s eyes her great 
agitation. Her breath came in quick gasps, 
but she determined to read it, and see for 
herself. Slowly she unfolded the single 
sheet, and read the following : 

“Dear Friend: 

“This is to inform you that I leave 
to-morrow on a journey to the Philippines, 
You will excuse me, I know, for not calling 
in person, when you learn that my time is so 
short that I am unable to call on anyone. As 
an old friend I will tell you somewhat of a 
secret. On my return I am to be married at 
Paris, France, thus adding, I hope, another 
friend to your long list. Remember me to 
your worthy parent, and believe me, 

“Your friend, 

“Floyd Vandercook.” 

As she read it a queer light came into 


66 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


her eyes, and deep paleness came into her 
face, and as she finished reading she delib- 
erately tore the letter into small bits, and 
cast them from her to the floor. Suddenly 
she turned to Melrose with a stony expres- 
sion, and asked in a strange husky voice, 
“Do you know positively that that is his 
writing.” 

“Having seen only the address I cannot 
say as to the contents, but the address was 
certainly in Floyd’s hand.” 

“Well, it matters very little, I did not 
think him capable of it. It reads like a 
school boy. If he wrote it I despise him. 
You said a moment ^go you loved me, 
please repeat it.” She laughed nervously 
while making the request. 

“Oh Wadna, you do not know how 
much.” 

“Very well, Clayton,” said she, with a 
faint tinge of blood mounting her cheek, 
“you have honored me very much. Here 
is my answer. I respect you, I like you. 
You are a good friend of my father. Are 
you willing to marry me, knowing that all 
I can bestow on you is this respect, that 
my love is dead? If so, Clayton Melrose, 
I will be your wife.” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


67 


Clayton started toward her with hands 
outstretched, eager to clasp her to his 
breast, transported with joy, but she 
waved him back with an imperious gesture, 
saying: “Wait till you hear the conditions. 
I will be your wife ; if at the end of six 
months from the day he left here I hear no 
word from him that will lead me to believe 
he loves me. In the meantime we can be 
engaged on these conditions.” She ap- 
proached a step nearer to him and a mo- 
ment later Clayton Melrose had accepted 
the sacrifice, sealing it with a kiss, which 
however, was not reciprocated. 

Clayton Melrose thought he was now 
sure of the prize for which he had steeped 
his soul in crime. For which he had vir- 
tually committed murder, and placed the 
brand of Cain upon his brow. Remorse or 
compassion found no place in his sin-coated 
heart. He was perfectly happy in the 
prospect of ultimate success, and ascenden- 
cy over his enemies. 

While these important events were trans- 
piring at the Virden mansion, Heaiford Van- 
dercook sat in his office, among his dusty 
records, worrying and fretting about his 
favorite nephew, Floyd. 


68 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


True, he had partially forgiven his other 
nephew, on that young man giving a sol- 
emn promise of good behavior, and humbly 
asking forgiveness for past transgressions, 
but no one could take Floyd’s place in his 
heart. He condemned himself bitterly for 
sending him away to a strange country, 
simply to prevent his marriage to the 
daughter of the woman who had jilted him, 
and Floyd’s long silence filled him with 
dread. Nearly two whole months had gone 
by, still as he had ascertained by cable, not 
a cent had been drawn from the bank at 
Manila. Floyd had not been there, where 
then had he gone? He might, even, be 
dead, and the fact not become known. As 
he sat thus thinking and fretting, his eyes 
rested on a bundle of papers that had been 
left during the day. As he untied the 
cord that held the small bundles, he no- 
ticed that the packet contained three 
weeks’ issue of the Denver Smelter^ and he 
sighed wearily, as he always did when 
these papers came ; they brought back to 
his mind the old struggle with poverty in 
the then far West, the slow tedious climb 
up the ladder of prosperity, and with these 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


69 


old remembrances, came the glad smile of a 
young and beautiful face, the face he had 
loved, and would continue to love until his 
mind would cease to remember, and his 
fast ageing eyes grew dim. He was about 
to lay the papers away, along with numer- 
ous other things he considered uselsss, but 
kept for old memory’s sake, when his eye 
caught sight of these words in heavy head- 
lines: 

A RELIC OF YE OLDEN TIMES. 

“Today, while Henry Trueman, who runs 
a large clothing business in a building used 
in ‘Auld Lang Syne’ for a post office, was 
removing a shelf from the rear of the build- 
ing, an old, yellow, time worn envelope 
dropped from behind it. When Mr. True- 
man picked it up, he found to his surprise 
that it bore date of 1870, showing it had 
lain in the old building for 28 years, for 
these dates although very dim, and faded, 
could be made out, as well as the address, 
Mr. Heafford Vandercook, in a cramped 
feminine hand. Some of the old residents 
remember Mr. Vandercook as one of the 
luckiest prospectors at that time. He was 
last heard of in Chicago. Mr. Truman 


70 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


has turned the old weather-beaten epistle 
over to the postal authorities.” 

Mr. Vandercook could hardly believe his 
eyes, and he read the article over and over 
again to convince himself that it was not 
a dream. He knew that there was only 
one person at that time who would be likely 
to write to him in a feminine hand, and 
that one was the owner of the smiling face 
in the old memories that had been filling 
his mind to-night. Although the writer 
had been dead some few years, the fact 
that she wrote him, which must have been 
just before her marriage to Virden, sent a 
glad thrill through his frame, and caused 
his blood to rush a little faster through his 
veins, and he decided immediately to pro- 
cure the letter and read from its yellow, 
faded sheets, what living lips had been 
forbidden to tell. He was not a man to do 
things by halves and when once decided to 
gain possession of the letter which to him 
was invaluable, he would not trust to the 
postal authorities to deliver a letter that 
had failed to reach him through these 
channels so long before, and at ten the next 
morning he was spinning along toward the 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


71 


field of his early battles against hard luck 
and poverty. He allowed his mind to drift 
back to twenty-eight years before, and he 
again felt the power of love surging in his 
breast. He would be young again for he 
was about to listen (as it were) to words 
of love from the lips of his bride to be. 
Words that, had he but received them, 
would have changed his whole life, and 
filled it with a blessing that he would have 
given all he possessed to obtain. 

He experienced no trouble in securing 
the letter, and as he read the contents, 
W’hich he did when alone in his room, tears, 
great briney tears, ran down his cheeks. 
In the letter she begged him to come to 
her without delay, as her father was about 
to marry her to another man whom she did 
not love. Even now Heafford Vandercook 
■cursed the fate that caused the letter to go 
astray. But he thanked God that at last 
he knew that she loved him, and him only. 
That although she had married another, 
her heart was ever filled with love for him. 
He hurried back to Chicago, getting hardly 
any sleep, and eating barely enough to 
sustain him. His soul was filled with re- 


72 


A DANGEKOIJS MISSION 


morse and sorrow. He had separated two 
young hearts that loved each other with a 
love as pure, as deep, as his own had been, 
all because the one he loved had married 
another. 

Yes, he had a duty to perform. The 
bringing together and making happy of 
his nephew and the daughter of the woman 
he had loved and wrongfully judged. The 
voice of the dead demanded it. Was it 
not through her agency that the long lost 
letter was discovered? Did she not look 
down in pity on the misery of her lonely 
daughter to answer her prayer? 

And who did she choose as her agent in 
bringing about that happiness but her old 
lover. Ah yes, he would surely see that 
all was made well. 

Wadna w^as indeed surprised when the 
servant handed her a card bearing the name 
“Heafford Vandercook;” and the next in- 
stant to find herself looking into two honest 
dark eyes, which seemed a trifle sad. 

“This is Miss Virden, I would know you 
anywTiere. Forgive me for following my 
card so closely. Miss, but there is no time 
to lose,” said Mr. Vandercook. “No Miss, 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


73 


you have never met me, but I am Floyd’s 
uncle, and I — I — knew your mother. Miss 
Virden, and was her friend,” he continued 
as he saw the questioning look she cast 
upon him. 

“A friend of my dear mother, sir, is a 
friend of mine, for I know her friends 
were always good. You are welcome, sir.” 

“I’m a man of business. Miss Virden. 
Ah, how like her you are, and I simply 
came to tell you that I am an old villain, 
yes, Miss, a villain. But before I proceed 
I want to ask you a question. Will you 
answer it?” 

“I will try, sir.” 

“Ah, but I want your promise, it is a 
vital one with me.” 

“Very well, I promise,” said Wadna, 
wondering what it all meant, and becom- 
ing exceedingly nervous. 

“Floyd Vandercook is my nephew. Do 
you love him?” 

“Mr. Vandercook, I promised to answer 
your question, but I had no idqa it would be 
this. I hope you will not insist on an an- 
swer, even if I did love him it would be 
very unlady-like to profess it, since he is 
about to be married.” 


74 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


‘‘About to be married?” echoed the old 
gentleman loudly, “who says Floyd Van- 
dercook is about to be married. I would 
like to see the person.” 

“Excuse me, sir,” said Wanda assuming 
a calmness she was far from feeling, “he 
says so himself.” 

“Impossible, madam. Impossible, I tell 
you. If Floyd Vandercook marries any- 
one it will be you, with God’s help and for 
the sake of your mother, but I must insist 
upon an answer as you promised. I know 
Floyd loves you for he told me so. I can 
answer for him. If he don’t he is a fool.” 

“Ah, sir, if I only knew, but the letter 
you gave Clayton told me that — ” 

“The letter I gave Clayton? Who says I 
gave a letter to Clayton Melrose for you ? 
I never did such a thing in my life.” 
Wadna’s heart almost stood still as she 
heard this. She felt as people sometimes 
do when the news of some unexpected, 
great good fortune is suddenly told them. 
She stared wildly at Mr. Vandercook, as 
if trying to probe his real thoughts; she 
arose and walking quickly over to where 
he was standing, and looking imploringly 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


75 


into his face she cried: “Oh, sir, do not 
deceive me, I do truly love Floyd as I shall 
never love any one else in this world ; hut 
Clayton Melrose gave me a letter, which he 
claimed you gave him for me, stating that 
it was picked up in Floyd’s room, and had 
lain in your desk until lately. In that let- 
ter, sir, Floyd said he w^as to be married in 
Paris on his way home. Oh it was cruel, 
cruel,” she cried, sinking into a chair and 
burying her face in her hands. 

Had Clayton Melrose been in the room 
at that minute he would have fared badly 
at the hands of his uncle, for that gentle- 
man was mad, and in the absence of any- 
one else to abuse, he abused himself . “Oh 
what a wretch I am,” he exclaimed. 
“Why w^as I born an old fool.?” and similar 
remarks escaped him as he paced two and 
fro, casting pitiful glances now and then 
at Wadna’s dark head, bent forward in an 
attitude of sorrow. Presently he stopped 
before her and exclaimed: “Wadna, Miss 
Virden, it’s all a demned lie. The letter is 
a forgery, and Clayton Melrose is the 
most accomplished scoundrel in the United 
States, except myself. Come, brace up. 


76 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


Please don’t cry, Miss Virden, you are 
breaking my foolish old heart. I love you 
for loving Floyd, and I swear solemnly that 
I’ll prove that letter a forgery or my name 
is not Healford Vandercook.” 

Something in the old man’s voice made 
her look up, and she saw two good honest 
eyes filled with tears, looking beseechingly 
at her, and she knew he told the truth. 

She smiled happily and rising she im- 
printed an affectionate kiss on the old 
man’s brow, exclaiming: “You have made 
the most miserable girl in Chicago the hap- 
piest by your kind words.” 

“Don’t talk like that. Miss, or you’ll 
have me blubbering. I’m a scoundrel, for 
I sent him away. But I’ll explain. Sit 
down here, my dear, and listen to an old, 
heart-broken man’s love story, and forgive 
me as I hope God will give me strength to 
right the w^rong I have committed.” 

Then in a hushed voice, sometimes trem- 
bling with emotion, he told her of the love 
he bore her mother when they were young, 
of his struggle for her sake. His final 
success, and return to claim her as his 
bride, only to find her the wife of another. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


77 


How he had judged her and thought her 
fabe. How he had found out that Floyd, 
the object of his whole love, loved the 
daughter of the woman he believed had de- 
ceived him. How he persuaded him to go 
to the Philippines, ostensibly in his interest, 
but in reality to part him from her. 

Then he told her of the partial reconcil- 
iation with Clayton Melrose. Of Floyd’s 
silence, his terrible anxiety for his safety, 
his doubts, his fears. As he proceeded he 
felt the little hand tighten in its grasp on 
his own. He saw her head drop lower and 
lower, until it rested on his sleeve. 

He told her of the mysterious letter 
found in Denver, after being lost for twen- 
ty-eight years. How it had explained all, 
and rekindled the old love into a burning 
flame. His desire now to right the wrong 
he had done his nephew, and the beautiful 
girl crying so softly on his arm, and when 
he had finished all was quiet as death, save 
for the tick-tock, tick-tock of the old 
clock on the mantel, as its pendulum swung 
slowly to and fro, counting off the seconds 
that pass so quickly down the swift flowing 
river of time, carrying with it the rich and 


78 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


poor, old and young alike. Stopping now 
and then to pluck a young life out of the 
Spring of its existence, or perhaps catching 
in its mighty arms the form of one whose 
summers have drifted away and who feels 
the hand of winter upon his drooping 
shoulders, carrying him into the vast 
ocean of eternity, again to be born into the 
likeness of Christ himself. 

At last the stillness was broken by Wadna, 
who said in a low sad voice, “Now I know 
why mother was always so sad, and why 
she wished me to marry Floyd.” 

“Did she wish that?” 

“It was almost her last request.” 

“As I live, it shall be fulfilled,” said Mr. 
Vandercook solemnly. “Of course you 
will have nothing more to do with Melrose. 
Unless, unless — wait a moment, let me 
think. Oh yes, that’s what we will do, for 
we are partners now, co-workers.” 

“You are to go on as if nothing had hap- 
pened. So will I. We must find out just 
how far his villainy extends, and what it 
means. I’ll get Floyd back here as soon as 
I can find him, and when our friend Mr. 
Melrose thinks he has won you, and has 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


79 


my fortune safe in his grasp, we’ll spring 
a mine on him. There is something omin- 
ous in Floyd’s silence, and I begin to fear 
here the old man paused, for he noticed 
that Wadna had turned deathly pale. 

“You fear,” she said; “come, tell me 
what you fear !” 

“I would rather not, my dear, it would 
only annoy you.” 

“I promise I will not be annoyed or 
worried.” 

“You promise, why what nonsense. You 
are as pale as a ghost now, and actually 
trembling.” 

“Yes, but I must know. I shall worry 
more by being uncertain. You fear — ” 

“I fear something has happened to him,, 
and that Clayton Melrose is at the bottom 
of it. Were Floyd Vandercook dead at 
this minute, and I were to drop dead in 
this house, Clayton Melrose would become 
my heir, and waste the fortune I have 
worked so hard to amass; but it shall never 
be, never. I’ll find him, or trace of him be-^ 
fore long.” 

“God grant you success.” 

“Amen,” said Mr. Vandercook. “I must 


80 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


yet visit the telegraph offices to-night so I 
will leave you for the present. You will 
hear from me as soon as I learn anything. 
In the meantime keep up your courage. 
Eight will triumph,” and as he passed 
down the walk Miss Virden could hear him 
repeating, ‘‘Right will triumph.” 

“God bless him,” she murmured as she 
gazed after him, thinking that not so very 
long ago this good old man and her own 
sainted mother had vowed their love for 
each other, only to be separated forever. 

“Oh,cruel,cruel fate,” she sighed as she 
closed the door, but her heart was made 
lighter by his visit. He had pulled the 
bandage from before her eyes, and revealed 
Melrose to her in his true light, which only 
added to her love for Floyd, who again 
claims our attention. 


CHAPTER VII. 


“Release that man immediately, you blood 
thirsty hound, or by my soul I’ll shoot you as 
I would the dog that you are.” The three 
would-be murderers turned quickly, and 
gazed down the shining barrels of two re- 
volvers in the hands of the captain. Leud- 
esso put up his knife and folded his arms 
across his chest, and merely shrugged his 
shoulders. A moment later Floyd was free, 
saved for the time being, at least, by the 
captain’s timely arrival. 

“What is the meaning of this?” cried 
the captain. “Is murder to be committed 
aboard my ship, before we are barely out 
of the harbor? Go to your quarters, you 
dogs,” he commanded, addressing the two 
accomplices. Then turning to Leudesso he 
said coldly : “You sir, may consider your- 
self under arrest until you can explain 
your unwarrantable conduct. Go into my 
cabin. Follow me. Senior,” he said in 
English to Floyd, and without another 
81 


82 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


word, except in undertone to his mate, 
he turned on his heel, and followed by 
Floyd, entered his cabin, where sat Leu- 
desso calmly smoking a cigarette. 

“Now sir,” said he, turning to Leudesso 
and speaking in broken English, “perhaps 
you will explain what you meant by trying 
to commit murder on board this ship.?” 

Leudesso turned on Floyd a look of in- 
tense hatred and started talking in Span- 
ish. 

“Talk English, sir, if you please,” said 
the captain. 

“Very well, captain,! will talk English. 
I will tell you that I have pride in serving 
my country sir, in bringing aboard this 
ship yonder spy, in the employ of the 
United States against the Filipino Repub- 
lic. He struck me. I was about to do my 
country a service when you commanded me 
to halt; that is all, sir.” 

The face of the captain assumed a very 
serious air, but Floyd smiled serenely. He 
felt that he could prove himself innocent of 
the charge. 

Presently the captain turned to him with 
a kindly light in his eyes, although the air 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


88 


of seriousness never left his face. “You 
can no doubt prove to my satisfaction Se- 
nior, that the charge against you is false.” 

“I can give you my word sir, that my 
business to the Philippines is purely com- 
mercial, that I am in no way in the employ 
of the United States Government.” 

“Can you not show me something that 
will corroborate this?” asked the captain 
anxiously. 

“I am sorry, sir,I have nothing except — 
ah, yes sir, I have letters to Aguinaldo, 
your Commander in Chief, and here they 
are,” said he going into an inner pocket, 
but they were not there. He felt the eyes 
of the captain upon him, and he knew he 
was being measured, judged, could feel the 
hot blood rush to his head as he hurriedly 
ransacked his pockets for the missing let- 
ters. They were gone. A terrible fear 
now took possession of him as he realized 
the dangerous position in which he was 
placed. 

“I’ve been robbed. My letters are gone,” 
he cried. Then he caught sight of the evil 
smile on the face of the Filipino and it 
maddened him. He rushed forward and 


84 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


seized Leudesso by the throat, crying, 
‘‘Give me my letters, you infernal villain, 
or I’ll strangle the life out of your deceit- 
ful body.” 

For answer Leudesso again drew his 
ever ready knife, and w^as about to plunge 
it into Floyd's body, when the captain 
caught his arm in a grip of iron ; at the 
same time he forced Floyd back into his 
seat saying quietly, “I asked you for proof 
of your innocence, sir, notan exhibition of 
your powers as a strangler. Perhaps your 
baggage contains something. I have taken 
the liberty to have it examined. We shall 
soon know, for I hear my mate approach- 
ing.” 

The mate now entered the cabin, and 
laying a paper on the captain’s desk retired 
without a word. 

The captain picked it up and read it over 
carefully. The lines about his mouth be- 
came harder each moment, a deep cloud 
settled down over his features, he was very 
much worried by what he read. 

Floyd and Leudesso watched him nar- 
rowly meanwhile, Floyd anxiously, for 
he knew much of his future depended on 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


85 


this quiet, dignified rebel captain, Leu- 
desso just as anxiously, for thoughts of 
riches when Floyd’s death was accom- 
plished, filled his mind. 

After studying the paper closely, read- 
ing it two or three times over, gazing long 
and earnestly on the reverse side where 
nothing appeared, the captain laid it on 
the table before him, leaned back in his 
chair and closed his eyes. It w^as evident 
that he was considering deeply what course 
to pursue, or whether he should pursue 
any course detrimental to the young man 
now before him, waiting anxiously for his 
verdict. He admitted to himself the ab- 
surdity of the proposition that Floyd would 
take passage on board his boat, knowing its 
character as he did, and trusting himself 
in the hands of Leudesso, if he w^ere really 
antagonistic to the Filipino Republic. 

On the other hand this might be a clever 
game of blufi, to facilitate his travelling 
in the Island by being able to say that he 
formed one of a party of insurgents, carry- 
ing arms and ammunition to the Island, and 
that he depended on Leudesso to help him 
carry it through. At any rate the captain 


86 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


(who at heart was honest) felt the grave 
responsibility of deciding what should he 
done, resting heavily on his shoulders. 
There was a chance, a probability, that the 
American was just what he assumed to be, 
nothing more ; on the other hand, — but the 
captain got tired of thinking at this stage 
of his reasoning, opened his eyes, picked 
up the paper and handing it to Floyd 
asked: “Is this the letter for which you 
were looking?” 

Floyd took it, and at a glance saw with 
horror that it was a letter from the Secretary 
of War to General Otis, requesting that 
gentleman to give the bearer all the aid in 
pushing his inquiries possible. It did not 
state what these inquiries were t(» be, and 
as Floyd read it now under the new condi- 
ditions that surrounded him he felt his face 
burn with shame and anger, for he real- 
ized the meaning the letter would convey 
to the minds of those who were at all in- 
clined to doubt his own story. “If I could 
only find that letter of uncle’s,” he thought, 
“it would explain all.” In the absence of 
that what could he say, except reiterate 
the honest intentions of his visit to the 
Islands. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


87 


‘‘Well Senior?” said the captain impa- 
tiently. 

“Captain, I can only repeat what. I told 
you before. This letter, notwithstanding 
its dangerous character, was given to me 
with others that would explain my true 
mission ; the others have been stolen, I 
feel safe in saying, by yonder thing in the 
guise of a man, for what reason I am un- 
able to say. Think you I would hire a 
man I knew to be an ex-Captain or some- 
thing in the Filipino army as a guide, if it 
was my intention to act as spy?” 

“It does not look reasonable. Senior, but 
my duty, sir, as an officer of the navy of 
Aguinaldo obliges me to take some action. 
Personally, sir, I have no feeling in the 
matter except to do justice both to you and 
to those whom I have the honor to serve. 
I do not even feel able, nor am I willing to 
act alone in deciding, therefore kindly re- 
turn me the paper, that I may submit it to 
the judgment of my officers. Ho Lebo! 
Orders, you scoundrel!” At the captain’s 
command a curtain concealing another 
part of the cabin from view, that Floyd 
had not before noticed parted, and a young 


88 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


full-blooded African appeared, or rather 
bounded into the room. In his ears and 
nose he wore the regulation African rings, 
and on each ankle large nickel plated 
bracelets appeared; these articles, and a 
breech-clout set off with various trinkets, 
valuable and otherwise, constituted his 
rather meager wardrobe. As he ap- 
proached the captain he prostrated himself 
on all fours. 

“Go and notify each of my officers that 
I wish to speak to them here immediately,’’ 
commanded the captain. 

Lebo arose and without a word disap- 
peared behind the curtain. 

Five minutes had hardly elapsed when 
again the curtains parted, and Lebo ap- 
peared followed by four men in fatigue 
uniform ; on the collar of each blouse ap- 
peared a tiny star, denoting some rank in 
the Filipino army. Lebo held the curtains 
aside until they had passed, then he disap- 
peared. 

The four men with a bow to the captain 
and a curious look at Floyd, silently seated 
themselves. 

Presently footsteps were heard ap- 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


89 


proaching the cabin from the deck; the door 
opened and the first and second mates en- 
tered, saluted the captain, bowed to the 
four officers, and took seats near their su- 
perior. 

Floyd watched these arrangements as 
one in a dream. It was hard for him to 
comprehend that his life or death might 
depend upon the verdict of these seven 
hard visaged men, not one of whom, save the 
captain, but looked capable of committing 
murder without a moment’s hesitation. He 
had very little hope for leniency from them. 
He became so absorbed in contemplating 
them that he was surprised to hear the 
captain mention the word “American,” and 
to see him standing addressing the assembly, 
with a very serious expression on his face. 
He saw him pass the incriminating paper 
around, and noticed with what assumed 
dignity and all* wise expressions the men 
examined it, some even holding it to the 
light as if expecting to find a subtle poison 
hidden between the two sides. Not one 
besides the captain and his first mate un- 
derstood the characters they saw written 
thereon ; at last the all important document 


90 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


was returned to the captain, who then said 
in Spanish : 

“Brother officers, you have all heard the 
charge against the American who is here 
present ; you have also examined the only 
evidence of his guilt, save the word of our 
countryman, in whom I have no confidence. 
I have told you the explanation given by 
the American, and his loss of letters he 
claims would prove his real mission to the 
Island. I will not say what I believe, nor 
will I agree to abide by the decision ar- 
rived at in this council, even if I had the 
authority to do so. If your decision is 
that he is an enemy of our cause, I will 
turn him over to the regular military au- 
thorities at Taquegabao to be tried by reg- 
ular tribunal. What is your decision.?” 

There was silence for a few minutes, 
during which the army officers conferred in 
an undertone together, and in which the 
mates of the ship spoke to the captain. 

Then there was clearing of throats, and 
one who appeared to be the ranking offi- 
cer arose, and with solemn emphasis said: 

“Captain, we of the army are united in 
declaring the evidence sufficient cause for 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


91 


arrest of the American as a spy. We are 
not ignorant of the importance of this pro- 
ceeding, but realize what the execution of 
our law against such an offence will pro- 
bably lead to, namely, war with the Amer- 
ican forces, but sir, we believe it must 
come sooner or later. Our verdict is, guilty. 
Leaving to you, sir, the safe keeping or the 
execution of the verdict as you see fit.” 

^‘I have heard,” replied the captain. 

Then the first mate arose and said: “Cap- 
tain and brother officers. We too have 
heard and examined the evidence. We also 
think the American is an emeny to our cause, 
but we commend that he be handed over 
to the proper authorities at Tuguegabao.” 
When he had finished speaking the captain 
arose and said in English : “Senior Vander- 
cook, whether guilty of the charge of being 
a spy or not, six of my officers have said 
you are; I myself am in doubt, but in obe- 
dience to the opinion of the majority I am 
obliged to place you under arrest. This is 
in name only, the liberty of the ship is 
yours until we reach our destination. I 
hope, really hope, sir, that you may prove 
you are innocent. Let me warn you, do 


92 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


not stray far from your cabin, which will in 
future be next my own. Have you any- 
thing to say, why this should not be 
done?” 

Although the conference had been con- 
ducted in Spanish, Floyd gathered from the 
various expressions on their faces, and 
their gesticulations that the army officers, 
as well as the captain’s subordinate, spoke 
in favor of his arrest, therefore he was not 
so very much taken aback when the cap- 
tain formally carried out their wishes. 
Still it required some little time for him to 
realize the terrible position the arrest placed 
him in. They could murder him in cold 
blood on this charge, and not a hand would 
be lifted in his defence, nor the fact become 
known to the outside world. Their action 
only emphasized how deep rooted was the 
suspicion in the Filipino breast against 
Americans in general, and plainly indicated 
their fear that the Spaniards had been driven 
from their country only to give place to a 
new and stronger master (more subtle if 
possible), promising great things in the 
improvement of their conditions, only to 
wrest from them that for which they had 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


93 


fought, toiled and hungered after. There- 
fore Floyd concluded that no mercy could 
be looked for unless, perhaps, he could in- 
spire them with fear of the terrible conse- 
quences the carrying out of their inten- 
tions would entail. He resolved to try it, so 
he replied : “Captain and gentlemen, I have 
given you my word of honor as a gentle- 
man and genuine well wisher of your 
success as a government, that my sole 
purpose in coming to the Philippine Is- 
lands is in the interest of my uncle, a 
capitalist of the United States, who wishes 
to invest money in this country. You have 
arrested me as a spy, and by so doing you 
virtually proclaim that a state of war ex- 
ists between the United States and your- 
selves. I ask you when was this war 
declared? My people have no knowledge 
of any such condition of things, nor do I 
really think you desire any such calamity 
to befall you. You think you are strong, but 
sirs, you can form no conception of the vast 
resources, the power, the magnitude of the 
fighting strength of the United States, the 
one power on earth whose friendship you 
should court, and once gained should 


94 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


guard with a jealous eye. But in arrest- 
ing me, a citizen of that country, you in- 
sult the flag that brought you out of the 
dark shadow of Spanish tyranny; who 
released thousands of your comrades from 
reeking, filthy dungeons ; the flag that 
now offers you the blessings of its protect- 
ing folds, that you may enjoy the freedom 
of thought and action, as well as speech ; 
that places you on an equality with all 
men, giving you a voice in the government 
of your country. The United States does 
this. It does more; it protects its citizens 
wherever they are. It punishes unremitt- 
ingly any wrong done to one of its citizens, 
whether white or black. I am proud to 
claim that citizenship, and call upon you to 
remember that any indignity offered me 
will be punished just as severely as though 
it were oflTered to our President. I demand 
my release, as a citizen of the United 
States, and I ask you to consider the cost 
of a refusal.” 

Floyd had not intended at the beginning 
to say so much, but as he proceeded he be- 
came warmed up to his subject. He wished 
to impress his hearers with the mightiness 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


95 


of the Nation of which he was a citizen, 
and the grave error they were committing 
in interferring with his liberty and rights 
as such. 

When he had finished the captain inter- 
preted the main points of his impromptu 
speech to the men, and Floyd was disap- 
pointed when he saw how little they seemed 
to care. They merely shrugged their 
shoulders deprecatingly, and as if by com- 
mon consent arose, and stalked out of thQ 
cabin. 

The captain now turned to Leudesso and 
said : ‘ ‘You are released, go and bring this 
gentleman’s baggage to his oabin. Your 
future aboard this ship will depend entirely^ 
on your conduct. Go.” 

Then turning to Floyd he said: “If I can 
be of any service to you after our arrival 
at Tuguegabao I will be happy, Senior.” 

“At Tuguegabao?” exclaimed Floyd. 

“Yes Senior.” 

“How far is that place from Manila?” 

“A very long way sir, Manila is at the 
south end of the Island while Tuguegabao 
is at the north.” 

Floyd groaned; here the last hope of es- 


96 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


cape or of clearing himself was dashed to 
pieces. He was to be taken into the very 
heart of the insurgent stronghold, with 
no way of communicating with his country- 
men except by boat or messenger. He 
turned pale and grew sick at the thought 
of being shut up in some filthy place, to 
be jeered at by the ignorant populace and 
at last perhaps to be shot, murdered in 
cold blood. “It shall never be,” he said to 
himself, and from, that moment he gave him- 
self up to devising some means of escape. 

The captain escorted him to his cabin, 
and wishing him a pleasant afternoon, went 
away. The day was very hot, and Floyd 
did not venture on deck, but occupied him- 
self in arranging the contents of his 
trunks, which he found thrown carelessly 
into the cabin, with locks broken and every 
article topsy-turvy. 

'“Oh, but you heathens will pay for this 
-some day,”he murmured, as he contemplated 
his almost ruined wardrobe. “Wait till I 
get out of this !” 

A storm had been threatening all day, 
and now great banks of inky clouds were 
seen coming up in the south , the wind 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


97 


freshened each moment and sighed and 
moaned among the rigging, and caused the 
numerous slack ropes to snap and crack 
against the single mast. The seas moved 
sluggishly, and a peculiar tint was visible 
to a considerable depth beneath the sur- 
face, and as the ship cut through the water 
the spray w^ould roll lazily back from her 
bow, as if unwilling to give way to the on- 
ward progress of the handiwork of such an 
inferior being as man. 

The heavy roll of th^.* ship increased with 
the wind, which by evening was blowing a 
gale. Thunder, such as Floyd had never 
heard, rent the atmosphere. Blinding 
flashes of lightning lighted up the sur- 
roundings with a lurid glare, still the Pride 
-of Samar kept on her course, the storm in- 
creasing every moment. Even in his cabin 
Floyd could feel the terrible shock of the 
billows as they crashed against the ship’s 
quarter, and seemed to pick her up bodily 
and hurl her into the face of the enraged 
elements, and as she would plunge down 
into a yawning gulf of black, green and 
purple tinted water, it seemed as if the 
floor of the cabin was leaving his feet and 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


that he must surely go out through the 
roof. 

The sun had now gone down; it was so 
dark that objects were not visible fifteen 
feet distant. Rain fell in torrents. It 
seemed as if a whole cloud was slowly set- 
tling down on the deck of the little ship, and 
through all this terrible din and uproar 
Floyd heard an excited hail, that he knew 
must come from the watch. Hurriedly don- 
ning a rain coat he opened the cabin door 
and peered out. All was quiet except for 
a somewhat excited dialogue going on 
in Spanish between the watch and the 
deck officer. Presently the captain was 
summoned, and very soon all the officers 
aboard were gathered on the bridge 
gazing toward the south and gesticulating 
wildly. The captain roared out a com- 
mand, and instantly all lights in the ship 
were extinguished, while from somewhere 
below the deck a low rumbling sound like the 
ruffle of drums being beaten upon softly 
could be heard. Dark shadows flitted about 
the deck, like silent spectres of the dead, 
then amid the silence and through the 
murky darkness of the night the steady 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


99 


tread of many feet became audible. 
Tramp, tramp, tramp. There was no 
word of command being given, but the 
steady tramp continued, steadily approach- 
ing near the place where Floyd was stand- 
ing. 


CHAPTER VIII. 


Floyd was about to dodge back into the 
cabin when a low hist came to his ears, and 
the sound of tramping feet began immedi- 
ately to recede. He was filled with a 
strange dread. What was the meaning of 
the sudden darkness, and the strange sounds 
coming from below, and what was the 
cause of the breathless silence of the knot 
of officers gathered on the bridge? He 
forgot for the time being the char- 
acter of the ship, and its strange crew, 
or the answer might have suggested 
itself. He decided to find out for himself. 
Carefully he began to feel his way through 
the darkness toward the stairs leading to 
the bridge, grasping everything he came to, 
to keep from being thrown down by the 
pitching and reeling of the ship. 

At last he found the ladder, and slowly 
ascended one step at a time. He gained the 
top in safety, and gazing away toward the 
south he saw a sight that almost brought a 
100 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


101 


cry of joy to his lips; a great white light 
that pierced the thick black atmosphere 
like a knife, and extending, it seemed to 
Floyd, two miles in length and growing 
wider from its source, resembling an im- 
mense river of flame, running through the 
inky blackness of the sky, could be seen 
slowly sweeping the boiling surface of the 
sea. Slowly and majestically it swept 
through space from a southerly to north- 
east, then in a northerly direction until it 
seemed to Floyd that its rays would surely 
envelop the ship, but they fell short a half 
mile or more. It w^as a powerful search- 
light, and Floyd knew it was from one of 
Uncle Sam’s mighty Men of War. 

He traced the light back to its source, 
and there was the green and red with a 
white light between the two that told him 
the mighty engine of destruction was bear- 
ing straight down across the bows of the 
smuggler. The men on the bridge noticed 
this about the same time and again the 
captain’s voice could be heard giving 
some command. Floyd heard the tinkle of 
a bell somewhere in the distance and imme- 
diately the Pride of Samar seemed to fairly 


102 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


leap from the water, and the manner in 
which she dived into the mountainous bil- 
lows threatened her destruction each mo- 
ment. Gradually Floyd felt the wind shift 
from his face to his back, and he knew that 
the ship’s course had been changed from 
South-east to North-east. “Aha! she is 
running away,” said he to himself. “It is 
truly one of Admiral Dewey’s ships on the 
lookout for just such a prize. If I could 
only ! Ah, there again comes the river of 
fire.” As the great search light again swept 
the surface of the sea in the direction of 
the Pride of Samar, this time it looked as 
if the fleeing ship must come within its 
range, but again it fell short, and died out 
altogether. Floyd’s heart sank within him 
as he saw it, and he crouched more closely 
in a corner of the stairs, the rain drenching 
him to the skin. He heard a short laugh 
from the bridge, and he judged that the 
officers thought they were safe from dis- 
covery. If such was the case their hopes 
were short lived, for all at once a light 
again shot out from the darkness in the di- 
rection of the tiny lights far in the rear, 
and in a moment the Pride of Samar was 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


103 


enveloped in a ray of soft, mellow light 
that lit up the surroundings almost as 
I)right as day, and revealed a sight never 
to be forgotten. There huddled together 
on the bridge stood the officers of the army, 
and the captain’s subordinates, their faces 
drawn and anxious; off to the side stood the 
<japtain in the act of signalling to slacken 
speed, but who now gave the small silver 
handle a nervous pull calling for more. 

Floyd cast his eyes to the deck, and there 
•crouched in double rank along the gunwales 
the whole length of the deck were two or 
three companies of rebel soldiers, all 
heavily armed, while at regular intervals 
between them several huge cannon showed 
their muzzles threateningly through the 
port holes. Instinctively Floyd began to 
wonder where they came from, when again 
the ruffle of a drum, and a low hist, like 
the noise of some deadly serpent, reminded 
him of what he had heard so shortly before. 
It all became plain now. The smuggler con- 
tained soldiers and ordnance as well as 
small arms, and what surprised Floyd more 
than anything else, it was evident they in- 
tended to fight before submiting to capture. 


104 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Again the great pathway of light veered 
around a couple of points west of the 
smuggler, and Floyd taking advantage of 
the complete darkness crept cautiously 
down the stairs and into his cabin. Throw* 
ing off his wet rain coat, and divesting him- 
self of his coat, he took down a life 
preserver that hung against the wall, and 
gathering together his money and valu- 
ables, he tucked them carefully away in a 
hole which he cut in the strong cloth that 
covered the cork. In another place he 
stowed a box of cartridges after wrapping 
them with a piece of rubber cloth to protect 
them from water. He then placed his 
trusty revolver away inside his vest, after 
which he buckled the preserver together 
around under his arms over his vest, and 
over all he again drew on the wet rain coat. 
Be now felt prepared for whatever might 
come. He felt sure that the Yankee Man 
of War had discovered the smuggler, and 
meant to give chase, but he could not un- 
derstand why her search light had been 
withdrawn. Somehow he felt a sort of 
companionship in that great stream of 
light coming as he thought from a Man of 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


105 


War, belonging to his dear native land. 
He knew behind that light, and all around 
it, were many brave Jackies in blue, strain- 
ing their eyes toward the black spot on the 
troubled surface of the South China Sea, 
trying to make her out, all unconscious 
that one of their countrymen was a prisoner 
aboard her, being carried far beyond the 
pale of civilization, to his death, or per- 
haps worse. In looking around his cabin 
by the light of many matches, to see if 
there was anything else he should have, he 
discovered a small door leading toward the 
captain’s cabin, which he was endeavoring 
to open when a noise at the door of his own 
cabin attracted his attention. He turned 
half expecting to receive a knife thrust for 
his carelessness in leaving the door un- 
locked, and there standing before him with 
a demoniacal grin on his hideous face, 
stood the African. In one hand he carried 
a shaded lantern and in the other he 
clutched a paper which he handed to Floyd 
with a nod, and another grin, at the same 
time holding the lantern so that its rays 
would afford light enough by which to 
read the contents of the crumpled note. 


106 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


It was in English, and poorly spelled, but 
Floyd managed to make out the following : 
“The Captain desires the presence of the 
American gentleman on the bridge, come.” 
He nodded his head vigorously to the Afri- 
can, who quickly withdrew. Floyd fol- 
low^ed him outside, and noticed with feel- 
ings of joy that the mellow light had again 
enveloped the smuggler, but it was not 
so bright as before ; the Pride of Samar 
was going at a terrific rate through the 
water, crashing into hard-looking billows, 
almost burying herself with water each 
plunge, and it was evident she was leav- 
ing her pursuer behind. Floyd reached 
the bridge, and was met by the captain, 
who said: “Yonder, Senior, is one of your 
Warships. This light you see around us 
is from her search-light.” 

“Do you think they have made you out?” 
asked Floyd anxiously. 

“I do not know, Senior, but we are leav- 
ing them fast in this terrible sea. I sent 
for you that I might know that you were 
safe in the event that we are forced to 
fight. I do not mean safe from the shells 
of yonder monster, but from one of my 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


107 


crew who might take advantage of the ex- 
citement to murder you.” 

“Surely sir, you do not intend to fight 
rather than be captured?” 

“I certainly do, Senior ; cast your eyes on 
deck and you will see that we are not so 
weak after all.” 

“Yes, Captain, but a single shot from one 
of those terrible guns would sink you.” 

“Not at all. Senior, besides it is not so 
easy to hit us on a night like this.” 

“You would never get close enough to 
use your soldiers or even your guns, sir,” 
suggested Floyd. 

“Yes I would. Senior, and I’ll tell you 
how. If I see that I cannot get away I 
will lay to and allow them to come very 
close, then sir, I will ram her.” 

Floyd was amused at the captain’s con- 
fidence in his ship and the men, but some- 
how he knew that he would be as good as 
his word, and he wondered if God in his 
mercy would save his life, if such a terrible 
thing should happen. He had no doubt as 
to the outcome of such an unequal contest. 
Suddenly the light was withdrawn, and 
the captain and Floyd gazed anxiously in 


108 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


the direction of the now invisible lights. 
There was a moment’s pause and then a 
great sheet of flame burst from the pursu- 
ing ship, accompanied by a dull roar, an d 
the next instant a great screaming noise 
was heard passing overhead. 

‘‘Discovered,” said the captain calmly. 

“Discovered,” said Floyd sadly, and 
found himself almost wishing the smuggler 
success in eluding her pursuer. 

The captain gave an order, and imme- 
diately a sail was hoisted which seemed to 
lend impetus to the already furious speed of 
the fleeing ship. 

There was another vomit of flame from 
the pursuing ship, again that dreadful 
roar came over the water. There was a 
deafening crash plainly heard above the 
noise of rushing wind and water, and the 
top of the main mast fell to the deck and 
hung over the bulwarks, dragging in the 
water, held there by stout ropes. 

“Stand by to cut away the wreck,” 
bawled the captain, and in a few seconds 
the piece of mast was left far in the rear. 
The captain shook his fist in the direction 
of the warship and swore in Spanish. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


109 


“Ah Senio:, they are good shots, these 
Yankee devils, to do that well in the dark, 
but they can’t get us. Senior. Never.” 

Floyd could not help admitting the 
genuine bravery of the captain, and the 
confidence he had in his ship to outstrip 
his pursuer. 

After cutting otf the top of the main 
mast the firing from the pursuing ship 
ceased, and nothing could be seen where 
her small lights had been visible, but the 
captain of the Pride of Samar did not re- 
duce the terrific speed at which she was 
going. It was easy to see that he was an- 
noyed by the strange ship’s disappearance 
and he kept up a careful and constant 
watch on all points of the compass. He 
evidently was afraid^of some Yankee trick 
and the strain of being in such suspense 
was beginning to tell on him as well as on 
the other anxious watchers. They were 
hungry as well as tired, but eating was out 
of the question. They had had no supper, 
and had stood out in the terrible rain and 
storm for three hours. Floyd felt the 
pangs of hunger growing on him, but he 
dared not ask for food, fearing poison. He 


110 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


began to feel sleepy too, but was afraid 
lest while he slept the pursuing ship would 
suddenly come upon them, and if she did 
he realized the importance of being wide 
awake, but he decided to make himself as 
comfortable as possible, so took up his old 
place on the stairway, which while not 
protecting him from the rain, shielded him 
from the terrible wind, and prevented him 
being thrown overboard. He thought it 
strange that the pursuing ship was unable 
to overhaul the smuggler, and wondered 
which, if either, of Uncle Sam’s ships it 
could be. He remembered the names of 
most of the Men of War now supposed to 
be ac or in the vicinity of Manila, and he 
was able to call to mind the speed of each. 
First, there was the cruiser Olympia, speed of 
twenty-two knots, Raleigh nineteen. Concord 
seventeen. The Olympia should overhaul 
the smuggler, but it was not likely to be 
her, for she was the Flag Ship. It was 
unlikely that either of the monitors, Mont- 
erey or the Monadock, wonld stray so far 
from Manila, yet the speed of the pursuing 
ship was about what would be expected of 
one of those double turreted death dealing 


DANGEROUS MISSION 


111 


machines. Last, but most unlikely of all the 
Baltimore, which outside of the Olympia 
was the fastest ship in the squadron, hav- 
ing a speed of twenty-one knots. She could 
have overtaken the smuggler, and not 
half tried. Floyd concluded it was either 
the Raleigh or the Concord, and having re- 
lieved his mind of the question, he did 
what he desired most of all to avoid, fell 
asleep. 


CHAPTER IX. 


The Pride of Samar was now in about 
Latitude 19 degrees North and Longitude 
117 degrees East, from Greenwich, with 
the mouth of the river Grande de Cagayan 
still four hundred miles distant, in a 
straight line. Her course which had been 
changed to Northeast early in the chase, 
was now changed to East by East, probably 
for the purpose of throwing the other ship 
off the track, but her speed was not slack- 
ened in the least. The captain was mak- 
ing full speed for one of the thousands of 
Islands north of Luzon, where he knew he 
could hide as long as he wished, and be safe. 

On, on she went through the darkness, 
.^ot a light visible anywhere above or be- 
llow. The soldiers were still at their post 
but more than half of them were fast 
asleep, worn out by waiting for what meant 
sure death to most of them. 

The officers becoming weary of watching 
went one by one to their cabins to gain 
112 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


113 


some rest. Floyd still reclined against the 
steps of the stairs leading to the bridge, 
constantly in danger of fracturing his skull 
against the other side. 

On the bridge stood the solitary figure 
of the captain alone, pacing to and fro ; the 
anxious look had almost left his face, and 
it was apparent that he felt satisfied that 
he had left his unpleasant and quarrelsome 
companion far behind. 

What of Leudesso all this time? During 
the heat of the chase and the firing, in fact 
from the time the light threw its first rays 
in the direction of the smuggler, Leudesso 
was really a laughable spectacle ; his fear 
was so great that he shook as if stricken 
with the palsy ; his eyes started from their 
sockets and his teeth chattered together 
like the knives in a meat chopper. He ran 
here and there vainly trying to find some 
safa place wherein to conceal his shivering 
anatomy, out of the way of the deadly 
shells. At last he squeezed his body into 
a small crevice between several bales of 
hemp stowed away in the hold, from which 
retreat he did not venture for fully an 
hour after the firing had ceased, when 


114 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


he cautiously peered out and finding- 
no signs of immediate encounter, he 
walked boldly forth and in loud whispers 
told one of his accomplices what“we would 
have done to the Yankees, if they had ov- 
ertaken us.” 

As hour succeeded hour and no more had 
been seen of their late antagonist, the cap- 
tain concluding he had won the victory ov- 
er might with speed, summoned his first 
officer, turned the command over to him 
and inviting Floyd, who was still half doz- 
ing on the stairs, to accompany him, 
went to his cabin. Here he had hot coffee 
and cakes served, which he pressed on 
Floyd, who eagerly accepted. Floyd 
thought he had never tasted anything that 
was half so good as that cup of black 
coffee and cake, and has been trying ever 
since to get coffee made just like it, that 
will taste just as good, but it is needless 
to say that ne is not successful. 

What an extraordinary spectacle, priso- 
ner and captor drinking and eating at 
the same table. The captor sharing his 
meals with his prisoner, treating him as he 
would a brother officer, in fact watching 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


115 


over him lest harm should come to him 
while in his charge. Here was justice and 
even more, as unexpected as it was refresh- 
ing. Here was a true man, one whose 
sense of justice toward one whom he con- 
sidered an enemy of his country, was not 
overshadowed by his love and undying loy- 
alty to his native land. A man, who rather 
than surrender to the Yankees, would sink 
his ship far down in the unknown depths 
of the China Sea; yet who could be tender 
and kind to another Yankee who had by 
chance fallen into his power. Yet it is al- 
ways the bravest who are the kindest and 
tenderest. Captain Acontello, though a 
half-caste and avowed supporter of “The 
Philippines for the Filipino,” was worthy 
to be classed with such men as Evans, Clark 
and Phillips of our own navy, or Paul 
Jones of ye olden times. Certain it is that 
he lacked neither the courage nor the high 
sense of justice and honor that go to make 
men truly great. Floyd was indeed to be 
congratulated for having fallen into the 
keeping of such a man, who no doubt had 
he been permitted by that power that rules 
over all, intended by his influence among 


116 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


the chief officers of Aguinaldo to restore 
Floyd safe and sound to his friends; he 
even intimated as much to his prisoner 
while they ate and drank together, and 
Floyd’s heart went out to the dark-skinned 
captain of the smuggler, and he confided to 
him how he came to be sent to the Philip- 
pines; he also told him of a certain dark- 
eyed maiden whom he had left in America, 
over eighteen thousand miles away, and the 
captain was convinced that this quiet, un- 
assuming and even inexperienced young 
man was no spy, hut one bent on a mission 
that could not prove otherwise than eventu- 
ally beneficial to the Island. 

The captain laid down on a couch and or- 
dered the African to bring rugs and spread 
them out on the floor. On these Floyd 
stretched himself and they were both soon 
fast asleep. 

The weather had now become more fav- 
orable. The wind had decreased visibly, 
and the seas were not so high, while over- 
head it was beginning to clear off, and 
everything pointed to a beautiful day on 
the morrow. The Pride of Samar was 
making unprecedented time, and it was 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


117 


reckoned by keeping up the speed by which 
she was cutting the water for twenty hours 
more, they would be well on their way up 
the River Grande de Cagayan; but as God 
is our life and death, and our. eternity, it 
is folly to calculate without considering 
His will. His wishes. He rules the destiny 
of men, as well as of nations. He who notes 
the fall of a little dead leaf to the ground, 
the flitting of a sparrow through the air, 
and who numbers the sands of the seashore, 
oft times brings the calculations of such an 
insignificant being as man to naught. 

Sunset and sunrise in this latitude are 
surprising events to one not accustomed to 
the queer pranks of old Sol. There is no 
twilight, at least not enough to be worthy 
the name, and the first intimation one has 
of dawn is the appearance of a great red 
globe of fire rising as it were out of the 
midst of the ocean. It is a magnificent 
sight, but after all one that grows old fast, 
and it cannot be compared to .our twilight 
in effect on the landscape. We would never 
wiiringly exchange the beautiful tint of 
our morning twilight, that throws a man- 
tle of exquisite beauty and grandeur over 


118 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


valley and mountain, kissing the hillside 
and the fields with its mellow glow ; the 
morning and evening kiss of the King of 
Nations to his beloved subjects, for the ab- 
rupt burst of sunlight in the Philippines. 

The first officer of the Pride of Samar 
was pacing indolently to and fro on the 
bridge. He had ceased to think of the 
ship that had followed them during the 
night, he was patiently waiting for his 
turn to come to go off duty. He stopped 
in his walk and scanned the east closely for 
a sight of the coming day, and even as he 
looked the sun seemed to shoot upward 
out of the throbbing bosom of the great 
sea. He heaved a sigh of relief at the sight, 
and was about to quit the bridge, when a 
startled cry from the port watch arrested 
the movement. Then came a cry, “Sail off 
the port quarter, sir.” 

He turned quickly, and there, outlined 
against the water, shining and shimmeiing 
in the tropical sun, was a beautiful ship 
not more than a mile distant. As he gazed 
spell-bound, great clouds of thick, black 
smoke arose from her funnels, and it 
seemed to the officer on the bridge of the 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


119 


Pride of Samar, that he noticed an im- 
mediate increase in the ship’s motion. 
He seized a glass and gazed at the now 
fast gaining ship. One look was enough 
to convince him that it was nothing less 
than a Man of War. He threw down the 
glass and fell rather than ran down the 
steps of the companion-way, and burst 
into the captain’s cabin. 

Floyd was awake in an instant, and 
gleaned from the excited talk of the men 
that something was about to transpire, but 
he waited for the captain, whose calmness 
and deliberate actions were exasperating, 
but whose face, nevertheless, wore an anx- 
ious expression. He arose and bathed his 
face in cold water, and adjusting his 
clothes, which he had not removed during 
the night, and motioning Floyd to follow, 
hurried to the bridge. He picked up the 
glass and looked at the approaching vessel. 
It was scarcely necessary to use a glass now, 
however, for the vessel’s outlines were 
plainly visible. Laying down the glass 
the captain turned to Floyd and said : 
‘ ‘Senior, yonder ship is the Baltimore. You 
have doubtless heard of her. She has hung 


120 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


on to us all night, waiting for daylight to 
be able to make us out ; so after all, Senior, 
you have a chance to die in battle instead 
of being shot as a common spy in Luzon.” 
Then he turned away and commanded : 
“Every man to his post. We will show 
the Yankees how free men can die in 
battle.” 

Then over the water came faint strains 
of music, “The Star Spangled Banner,” 
being played by the band on board the 
Baltimore. 

Floyd felt the blood go rushing through 
his viens as the air floated across the heav- 
ing swell, but he had no time to think, for 
slowly up the mast of the Baltimore a flag 
was seen to climb until it unfurled itself 
at the top. Floyd could not repress an 
“Ah!” as the Stars and Stripes snapped 
gaily in the light breeze, and proclaimed to 
those on board the smuggler the nationality 
of the on-coming ship. 

“Stand by your colors, there. Run up 
the flag of the Filipino Nation, and let no 
man disgrace his country by hauling it 
down,” said the captain. 

Up went the flag to the top, and as it un- 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


121 


furled to the breeze a puff of smoke left 
the side of the Baltimore, and a solid shot 
went whistling across the bows of the 
smuggler. As the shot struck the water a 
short distance ahead and again soared up- 
ward and onward for quite a distance, 
Floyd looked at the captain to note its 
effect. He was almost startled by the ter- 
rible look of hate and determination that 
he saw written on his countenance, and he 
felt that all was up with him ; still he ex- 
perienced no real fear, at least the fear 
that he always thought would enter his 
heart at being in battle ; he seemed more 
interested in the fate of the smuggler and 
her captain than in his own safety, and he 
resolved to remonstrate with the captain 
on what he considered his rank madness. 
So approaching he said: “Surely, sir, you 
do not intend to resist capture in broad 
daylight at the hands of yonder Man of 
War. It is nothing less than murder and 
suicide, sir.” 

The captain turned on him a look of dis- 
dain, almost repugnance, and said: “Ah, 
Senior, 1 had almost forgotten you were 
aboard. I’m not quite ready, however, to 


122 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


turn the command of this ship over to you. 
I might also suggest that this bridge is a 
dangerous place; as you seem to be a trifle 
afraid, my cabin is at your disposal.” 

Floyd’s pride was touched, and he re- 
plied rather hotly: ‘‘The fear, sir, if I have 
any, is for yourself and crew. I thought 
not of myself, and here I stand until the 
end, sir, and may God have mercy on us 
all.” All this happened in much less than 
a minute, and the shells from the Baltimore 
were beginning to come thicker, and each 
time nearer to the body of the smuggler ; 
it was evident that the captain of the Yan- 
kees did not wish to sink her, if it were 
possible to halt her without. The Balti- 
more was now following directly in the 
wake of the smuggler, and a great shell 
from one of her forward guns now came 
tearing through the ship ; entering at the 
stern, and passing under the bridge the 
missile went crashing through the doomed 
vessel’s forward compartments, sending 
splinters of wood flying in all directions, 
and leaving blood and death in its wake ; 
groans, cries and curses mingled with the 
awful crash of timbers, and sent a cold chill 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


123 


through Floyd’s body. The deck below 
them became obscured by dense clouds of 
smoke, and a sailor reported, “Part of the 
funnel shot away, sir.” On hearing this 
the captain signaled to stop the engine, 
then gave the signal to reverse. Immedi- 
ately the firing from the Baltimore ceased, 
and Floyd’s heart rose for he thought the 
Pride of Samar was about to be surrendered. 
The captain signaled the man at the wheels 
“Hard aport!” and she came slowly around 
until she faced the fast approaching war 
ship. 

Captain Acontello stood holding the sig- 
nal handles, his face drawn and white as 
death, a ferocious gleam in his eyes, and 
waited until the advancing ship was within 
easy hailing distance; then he gave several 
nervous pulls at the signal of the engine, 
and the Pride of Samar shot ahead at full 
speed headed straight for the Baltimore^ 
amidst cheer upon cheer from the sailors 
and soldiers below. 

Captain Acontello was about to ram the 
Baltimore. “God save us,” cried Floyd 
as he became aware of the captain’s pur- 
pose. Those on board the Baltimore knew 


124 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


of the mad design of the smuggler’s cap- 
tain almost as soon as Floyd, and now be- 
gan a terrible scene. Shot after shot was 
poured into the smuggler. The dead and 
dying were lying all about her deck in 
heaps, still as if by a miracle the engine 
and steering gear remained intact. The 
Baltimore turned her sharp nose to receive 
the attack, but being much larger than the 
smuggler she required more room, and it 
was plain she could not avoid receiving the 
on-coming ship full in the quarter, for 
Captain Acontello followed her maneuvers 
closely, and caused the smuggler’s direction 
to be changed accordingly. Now she was 
close upon them, almost riddled to kindling 
with shot, but her speed increasing each 
moment, with a lot of demons upon her 
deck screaming and yelling, crazed by the 
sight of blood and the dead, and drunk to 
frenzy with excitement, on, on, she flew. 

Floyd was standing by the captain when 
a shot struck the misguided commander 
and carried him off the bridge. As if by 
a sudden inspiration Floyd grasped the 
signal handle and pulled. Instantly the 
engine ceased to throb ; but it was too late 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


125 


to avoid the crash, and as he braced him- 
self for the shock he felt two sinewy hands 
around his throat ; the next instant Leu- 
desso’s distorted face and blood-shot eyes 
peered into his and hissed : 

“Ha, Senior, here you die, you Yankee 
dog. Thirty thousand dollars is too much 
to pay me when I would have killed you 
for nothing.” Floyd felt himself falling — 
falling — falling — until all was blank. He 
did not know when the vessels met, he did 
not witness the awful sight aboard the 
smuggler, as she glanced harmlessly off 
the steel sides of the Baltimore, and almost 
immediately sank, for his senseless form 
was floating on the surface of the North 
China Sea, held up by the life preserver he 
had so providentially provided himself with 
from the smuggler. 


CHAPTER X. 


As the Pride of Samar glanced off the 
protected sides of the Baltimore, she plunged 
heavily to one side, pitched forward on her 
beam ends and sank,out of sight with an 
awful roar, as if, having fought nobly an 
unequal contest and lost, she preferred to 
rest her bones on some coral reef far beneath 
the surface of the ocean rather than 
submit to become a prize to her hated rival. 

Boats were quickly lowered from the Bal- 
timore and a rescuing party was soon pick- 
ing up the struggling mass of humanity 
from the sinking smuggler. Out of a possi- 
ble total of two hundred souls who were on 
board the smuggler, seventy-five persons 
were rescued, among them Leudesso, un- 
conscious from a slight wound. The re- 
mainder, dead and living, went down on 
the unfortunate Pride of Samar, with the 
single exception of Floyd who somehow 
had drifted to quite a distance away from 
the scene of the attack, and whom the 
126 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


127 


rescuing party did not see, although they 
were very close to his body several times. 

When the last man was placed aboard 
the war ship the boats were hoisted to 
their places and the Baltimore steamed se- 
renely away, leaving the living body of one 
of their countrymen alone, except for the 
dead, unconscious on the heaving bosom of 
the sea, two hundred miles from land, and 
that land full of unknown men and dangers. 
Alone, to become a prey perhaps to hunger;, 
keen-eyed sharks, or to slowly die of a tor- 
turing thirst. But no blame could possibly 
be attached to the officers or the crew of 
the rescuing party ; who among them could. 
believe or think they were leaving behind! 
them one of their own countrymen, released 
from the hands of the captors only to become- 
a captive to a mightier foe, the fickle sea.. 

Occasionally a sea larger than the rest 
would sweep over his face, brushing back 
his wet hair from his brow, but they were 
generally long unbroken swells that lifted 
him to their crest, to gently lower him down 
again to await the next. 

How long he remained unconscious can 
never be told, but all at once he opened hia 


128 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


eyes and gazed^wonderingly around ;was this 
death? Was that cold thing he felt around 
his throat that monster death, gradually 
choking out his existence? He felt a pain 
in his head and all the harrowing details of 
the past two days came back to him like an 
electric shock; he remembered Leudesso’s 
evil face peering into his, he looked for the 
ship. ‘‘Gone! All gone !” he cried, “and I 
am lost. Oh God, be merciful to me and 
save me.” He gazed around him, and saw 
at some distance a piece of wreckage. He 
swam toward it, gained its top, and as he 
did so a huge shark turned on its back and 
showed its white teeth and savage eyes. 
He thanked God for showing him the piece 
of floating wreckage just in time to save 
him from the monstrous jaws. 

He stood upright and gazed around. 
Water! water! a never ending, boundless 
waste of heaving billows met his gaze in 
:all directions, but far to the west he caught 
rsight of a dark, tiny object fast becoming 
dim in the distance; it was the Baltimore. 
He tore off his coat and waved it franti- 
cally in the hope that some eye on board 
the retreating ship might notice it, and 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


129 


come to his rescue. Vain hope! poor 
weary soul, they have long since ceased to 
gaze in your direction ; useless effort, you 
are now far beyond the help of man. There 
is only one can save you now; He who 
stilled the troubled waters of Galilee, He 
to whom was given power over death, but 
who died that we might live, can save you 
and He alone. Oh, how many of us forget 
there is a Christ until, like Floyd, we find 
ourselves out on the boundless ocean of 
trouble and adversity, out of the reach, or 
far beyond the call of man, to whom we are 
accustomed to look for succor. Then we 
suddenly think there is a greater than 
human assistance near us, and we pray to 
God, to Christ for help, but how sad it is 
to contemplate that this is only done, after 
calling on man in vain. That He to whom 
all our cares and adversities should be 
taken first of all, is thought of only after 
failing to receive the needed help from 
man, a creature of God, merely a tiny 
bubble in the ocean of God’s creation, and 
one too, that is weak and changing. 

Floyd watched the tiny speck grow 
smaller, little by little, until at last i^ 


130 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


faded from his sight altogether. It is ut« 
terly useless to try to describe the feeling 
that came over him, as the last vistage of 
the Baltimore disappeared below the hori- 
zon. 

Alone! Ah who can comprehend the full 
significance of that one little word. We 
use it every day in our talk to express a 
state of being when surrounded by friends 
and acquaintances, or we say alone in a 
crowded city, with a mass of humanity 
surging around us, to whom we may go for 
information, or to whom we may talk, and 
this knowledge lends us comfort. But al- 
low yourself for a moment to drift in 
thought to a little piece of deck, not more 
than six feet square, far out in the middle 
of the North China Sea. On every side of 
you as far as the eye can reach is water, ^ 
water, that lifts your little home high in 
the air, only to plunge you the next instant 
into a valley. On each side rise moun- 
tains of rushing, roaring water ; no living 
being near you to whom to speak, and 
when you speak yourself your voice seems 
to die out at your lips; its strangeness 
startles you. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 131 

‘‘I am out of humanity’s reach 
I shall finish my journey alone, 

Never hear the sweet music of speech, 

I start at the sound of my own.” 

This verse but poorly expresses the feel- 
ing that came over Floyd, at he sank wear- 
ily down on his small craft to wait. Wait, 
for what? He is out of the regular course 
of all vessels. He does not hope for rescue 
from that quarter. In fact there seems to 
be no ray of hope shining through the 
dark future, except relief in death. Al- 
ready he feels the terrible pangs of hunger 
gnawing at his vitals. Already his tongue 
is beginning to swell from thirst, the tor- 
turing pangs of which are beginning to 
make themselves manifest. 

The torrid sun beat down on his unpro- 
tected head, and helped to stimulate his 
terrible thirst, but as much as he feared the 
effect of the sun, he dreaded the advent of 
night and what it would bring with it, far 
more. 

If he could only do something, work, or 
walk about, anything to relieve his 
cramped limbs of their stiffness, and occupy 
his time. He could do nothing but hang 
on to his small world and gaze out upon 


132 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


the wilderness of water. As he sat thus 
he noticed something dark on the crest of 
a wave near him ; he gazed at the object, 
wondering what it could be ; nearer and 
nearer it drifted very slowly, until it was 
quite close ; then he noticed a commotion 
near it, suddenly it turned half around ; 
merciful Heavens ! it was a human head and 
he recognized it as that of Captain Acon- 
tello ; slowly it turned until he saw the face 
with open eyes, which seemed to start at 
him with a pitiful expression, but it dis- 
appeared almost as suddenly beneath the 
waves. The sight was sickening, and 
Floyd turned his head away and tried to 
think of something else, but he soon found 
himself trying to devise some plan to keep 
him on the raft, for he knew he could not 
long remain rational under the trying or- 
deal through which he must pass, before 
death relieved him. It is true he still had 
a faint hope that through Providence he 
would be rescued, but it was so small that 
he dared not think of it seriously. He 
thought that chance perhaps would send a 
steamer or other vessel near him, but he 
clung to it only as a condemned man upon 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


133 


the gallows with the trap ready to be 
sprung, clings to the hope of pardon, hop- 
ing against all reason, and against his own 
judgment. 

There was nothing at hand that could be 
used to tie himself on the raft, and after 
dismissing different schemes from his mind 
as impracticable, he gave up in despair. 

All day long, that seemed years to him, 
he sat there, and suffered almost the tor- 
tures of the damned in Hades. Several 
times he had taken his revolver out of his 
breast and wondered if it would not be bet- 
ter to end his misery with one shot from it, 
than to die a slow death from thirst. He 
even discharged it once to see whether it 
would do the work effectively, and as the 
short, quick report greeted his ear he 
laughed wildly. Here was a sure remedy 
for his troubles that had fallen over each 
other in their eagerness to engulf him, and 
he decided that when his torture became 
unbearable to use it. 

About three o’clock in the afternoon, as 
he was half reclining, with one arm under 
his head, and gazing at nothing in particu- 
lar, he saw what looked like a spar some 


134 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


little distance away. He knew there must 
be rope attached to it, and he longed to 
possess it, hut how could he get it. He 
knew the water near by must be full of 
sharks, attracted hither by the dead from 
the wreck, but he also knew that without 
a piece of rope he would soon be food for 
them himself ; besides, the distance between 
himself and the spar was increasing momen- 
tarily, and what he did must be done 
quickly. He decided to risk it, and plac- 
ing his knife in his teeth, he slid quietly 
off the raft and swam swiftly toward the 
spar, which he gained. Rope there was in 
plenty and cutting off a long piece, he 
started back to his — ship, keeping a sharp 
lookout for the monsters of the deep ; but he 
was undisturbed, the feat had been accom- 
plished, and Floyd felt glad, he even began 
to take a more hopeful view of his position ; 
“at least” he argued, “if I die, I’ll not be- 
come a prey to those demons, like poor Cap- 
tain Acontello’s body.” In a few minutes 
he had himself lashed to the raft, in a way 
that, while he could move almost as freely 
as before, would prevent him from being 
washed off, and unless the raft turned clear 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


135 


over he was safe from drowning at least. 

Slowly the sun approached the western 
horizon, and suddenly sank out of sight, 
and the little black spot on the great East- 
ern Sea was visible no more. 

Morning came and disclosed the small 
raft and its occupant. It had drifted a 
couple of leagues southward during the 
night, but it mattered little to Floyd, who 
lay still and deathlike ; his face was color- 
less , his lips were swollen to twice their 
natural size, but death had not yet claimed 
him. Flesh and blood had simply proved 
unequal to the strain, and unconsciousness 
had come upon him, and with a kind hand 
had made him insensible to the terrors of 
hunger, thirst and loneliness. 

About eleven o’clock rain began to fall, 
and continued steadily all day. Almost at 
the first drop that touched Floyd’s parched 
lips he started up, and wept for joy. He 
held his coat so that the rain fell into a 
hollow, from which he drank greedily, and 
seemed refreshed. 

Night again came on, and again Floyd 
relaxed into unconsciousness, during which 
he would suddenly start up and rave. 


136 A DANGEEOUS MISSION 

and curse wildly, only to fall back ex- 
hausted and moan piteously. 


CHAPTER XI. 


Early the next morning a strange look- 
ing sloop-rigged boat could have been seen 
near the vicinity where Floyd’s uncon- 
scious body was being tossed about on 
the waves. The craft really consisted of 
three boats built together, with the deck 
laid over all ; from the bow of the center 
boat a tall mast arose, which supported an 
immense sail, the lower boom of which ex- 
tended back nearly twenty feet, or two- 
thirds of the length of the craft itself. 

She also carried a large jib sail, the boom 
of which must have been all of fifteen feet. 
Both sails were extraordinary in their size 
in comparison with the length of the boat, 
which was a mixture of sloop and Catama- 
ran. 

She was gradually working her way 
southeast, in the direction of the island of 
Luzon. The wind was blowing quite hard 
from that direction, and she kept tacking 
137 


138 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


back and forth, going several miles on each 
tack, before changing. 

On her broad deck all was quiet. Her 
crew, consisting of several savage looking, 
half naked men, with yellow faces and black 
hair, were lying indolently about the 
deck smoking, or leaning over the rail 
watching the water as it glided by them. 
Their naked and sunburnt legs, and bare 
feet, were large and bony, and the fishy 
odor coming from somewhere below pro- 
claimed them as belonging to one of the 
many tribes of semi-civilized savages of 
Luzon, who subsisted by their skill as fish- 
ermen. 

They were now on the starboard tack ; 
their course brought them close to the raft 
on which Floyd lay stretched, and it seemed 
they would surely pass it by without no- 
tice; when nearly abreast of it the men at the 
helm set up a terrible cry and chatter, which 
was neither Spanish, nor yet the mixed 
language that is frequently heard among 
the Filipinos. It resembled the chatter of 
the monkey more than any human tongue, 
and the sound seemed to come from his 
throat, through his closed teeth, accom- 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


139 


panied by gesticulations that immediately 
brought the loungers to their feet in evi- 
dent alarm. 

It proved to be the raft that had caused 
it all, and which by this time was some 
distance to the rear. 

There was a moment’s chattering and ges- 
ticulation among them, then the wheel was 
put over, the large sail began flopping in 
the breeze, then filled gradually, and the 
Catamaran bore swiftly down upon the 
raft, sailing wing and wing, for the wind 
was perfectly fair. 

The boat was handled with such skill 
that the sail was lowered and she came to 
a stand still right beside the raft, so near 
in fact, that long poles were used to keep 
the raft from being dashed against her 
sides. 

A dark body was seen to drop overboard 
and presently appeared on the raft 
Quickly cutting the rope around Floyd, he 
called for a rope from the boat, which he 
passed under the arms of the apparently 
dead man, he waved his hand and the men 
on the boat hauled away, and a moment 
later Floyd was the center of a very ex- 


140 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


cited group of savages. Nor were they 
lacking in their kindness or attention 
toward him. Strong liquor of some kind 
w^as poured down his throat. His outer 
clothing was removed, together with the 
life preserver, that disclosed his little 
money and valuables as well as his revolver, 
but strange to relate, after looking cur- 
iously at these articles, they were replaced 
in the lining of the preserver which was 
carefully laid away to one side, with his 
other clothing. The practice of rolling on 
a barrel or a similar substitute, seemed to 
these savages to be an old method of forc- 
ing the water from the body of a half 
drowned person, for they resorted to it in 
resuscitating Floyd from the death like 
unconsciousness in which they found him, 
and the tenderness with which they went 
about their work bespoke for them a tender 
heart, and a fellow feeling for mankind in 
sore distress, that some of their more highly 
civilized brethren could emulate to their 
credit. 

At the first appearance of life grunts 
of satisfaction could be heard issuing 
from their dusky throats, while kindly 


A DANGEBOUS MISSION 


141 


but strong arms bore him to the cabin 
near the stern; while others placed furs 
on the floor, with a sack full of soft, 
downy substance at the top for his head, 
on which they laid him. His under- 
clothing they took from his body, and 
wrapped him in a soft flaxy covering, re- 
sembling a quilt. 

A guard or watch was placed at the door 
to watch over him. That they had ever 
before gazed on the face of a white person 
is doubtful, and they discussed him in 
whispers full of awe. 

Meantime the Catamaran was getting 
under way and went speeding on her jour- 
ney toward the coast. The weather was 
clear, not a cloud obscured the sky, and the 
sea was like a mirror in its smoothness, 
and the light wind filling the immense 
spread of canvas, carried the queer boat 
swiftly along. 

Early the next morning Floyd, who by 
this time was able to sit up, was carried 
out of the cabin on the arms of two of the 
men, and placed in a hammock, where sup- 
ported on either side, he could gaze on the 
coast which they were now fast approach- 
ing. 


142 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Directly ahead the coast was mountain- 
ous. High, rugged cliffs overhung the 
water, their peaks resplendent in the ver- 
dure of the tropics, far away to the north and 
south it was less rocky and dropped away 
in one long, level plain, barely visible above 
the level of the ocean. Even at the dis- 
tance of several miles from the shore a pe- 
culiarly sweet and pleasing perfume was 
wafted to them on the morning air, and 
Floyd drew in a deep breath that was ex- 
hilarating. He wondered where he was 
being carried, and asked before he thought, 
pointing to the nearing, land, if it was the 
Island of Luzon. 

From the emphatic nods and pleased grins 
his eyes encountered, together with a series 
of gesticulations, meant to convey the 
beauty and pleasures of the island, Floyd 
interpreted an affirmative answer. ‘‘So 
after all,” he thought, “here I am about 
to enter the land of Luzon, which 
must also be, from what I see about me 
here on this strange craft, a land of sav- 
ages, as well as a land of struggling pa- 
triots. After passing through the very 
jaws of death, I at last see the goal; when 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 14S 


will I again see civilization, is another ques* 
tion, I see the hand of fate in everything.’’ 
Then as if pierced by a red hot iron his 
conscience revolted against the thought. 
It seemed to whisper: “Was it fate that 
saved you on the bridge of the smuggler, 
with the shells of the war ship falling like 
hail around you? Was it fate that latei" 
your life was saved by a small piece of 
wreckage coming within your reach just in 
time to save your life? Was it fate that 
saved you from the murderous knife of the 
assassin, Leudesso? Was it fate that 
caused this strange craft, manned by sav- 
ages, to steer her course so that you would 
be rescued from the sea? Or was it the- 
hand of God stretched forth in answer ta 
your prayer for help?” And from the full- 
ness of his heart went up the answer:: 
“Thou, Oh Christ, the God, am my pre- 
server. I thank Thee for Thy goodness and 
mercy.” 

Each moment the Catamaran lessened 
the distance between itself and the shore, 
and although up to this time she had been 
obliged to go about on ‘ ‘short tacks, ’ ’ Floyd 
noticed now she was scudding along before 


144 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


the wind, which had very suddenly changed 
from south-east to due west. A long time 
after he learned that where the high moun- 
tains rear their heads far above the sea, a 
wind blowing off land would suddenly 
change after getting beyond a certain zone 
on the outward journey, and blow from the 
sea, and vice versa; but the question at the 
time did not occupy his mind to any extent ; 
but on looking ahead he failed to see where 
any landing could be made, and as the sails 
of the Catamaran were not reduced, he 
wondered if the crew had lost their reason, 
for she was going at a fast rate of speed 
directly against the rugged, overhanging 
mass of rocks, and Floyd was momentarily 
expecting to feel the shock, when all of- a 
sudden the queer craft veered slightly to 
the right and as if by magic Floyd saw a 
great opening appear, into which the boat 
plunged under a great arch of slippery, 
jmoss covered rocks. 

Everything was as dark as night. Floyd 
gazed above, but the clear sky was not 
there, but far to the rear he could see a tiny 
light, the entrance; and as he gazed 
eagerly ahead, light was beginning to break 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


145 


into view like the dull gray of early morn- 
ing, which grew larger and more bright 
each second, until the craft shot out into 
the light of day, and into a beautiful in- 
land lake, bordered on every hand by the 
low lands of a rich, grassy plain. Off to 
the right a village of rude huts appeared, 
built to a little height off the ground. 
Toward this the boat was turned, and as 
she approached the shore it became lined 
with dusky skinned men and boys, old 
women and comely maidens, while away to 
the left, probably distant about five miles 
in the mountains, a small volcano could be 
seen in a semi-state of eruption. 

Before reaching the landing the one who 
acted as captain stood up at the bow of the 
boat and yelled at those on shore, mean- 
while pointing out Floyd, who was amazed 
a moment later to see those on shore pros- 
trate themselves on the ground, at the same 
time singing a weird chant. They re- 
mained in this attitude while three of the 
boatmen jumped into the water, carrying 
Floyd on their stout shoulders and headed 
by the great towering form of the captain, 
waded ashore. Floyd was carried to a 


146 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


hut in the center of the village, larger than 
the rest, and amid great rejoicings of the 
people, they proclaimed him their Messiah, 
while a number of dusky warriors circled 
with hands clasped around the hut, keeping 
up the same weird, monotonous chant that 
had at first greeted his ears. Here at last 
was to Floyd the secret of their kindness 
toward him, and he learned that their Mes- 
siah had died, and the crew of the boat 
that had picked him up had just that morn- 
ing buried him, as was the custom, in the 
depths of the ocean. Chance had thrown 
Floyd in their way, to himself become their 
head man in spiritual things, as it was the 
duty of the burying party to provide be- 
fore their return another Messiah for their 
people. 

At first Floyd’s recovery was very slow, 
and it was several days before he became 
well enough to walk alone ; after that, how- 
ever, he quickly gained strength, and at the 
end of two weeks he began to think of escape, 
for by this time he had learned enough 
about the savage tribe into whose midst 
he had been so strangely cast, to understand 
that they would never allow him to go if 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


147 


they knew it; therefore escape was the pro- 
per word, and one that continued to occupy 
his mind to the exclusion of everything else. 
But it was to be no easy matter to get 
away, unseen, from the village, for one of 
the savages was continually in attendance 
at the door of his hut, ready and anxious 
to gratify his every wish, except allowing 
him to depart. 

Even in his daily walks he was attended 
by two stalwart savages, ostensibly as ser- 
vants, but as he rightly guessed to prevent 
escape. But these long walks were not 
without their interest, as Floyd soon found 
out. One day while w^alking on the shores 
of a small, swift stream he noticed some- 
thing shining under the surface. He 
stopped then and there, and digging down 
into the sand with his bare hands, he was 
amazed on lifting them up to find that the 
bright and shining substance contained a 
good percentage of gold. He whittled 
stakes and planted them in the earth a 
little to one side to mark the spot, but it 
was hardly necessary, for he found the 
same evidence of richness, as far up the 
stream as he went. 


148 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Then there were the animals, different 
from anything he had ever before seen. 
The water-horse and the queer little goat- 
like animals. The different varieties 
of monkeydom, some jet black, others 
snow white with pink eyes. He also 
saw some man-eating gorillas that went in 
companies of five to ten. Birds of beauti- 
ful plumage were in abundance. 

He noticed too that the soil was rich and 
very fertile, as evidenced by the great 
growth of rice, hemp and flax, or abaca, 
which the natives cultivated in their an- 
cient way ; but notwithstanding the beauty, 
richness and picturesqueness of all this the 
one absorbing thought became, how to es- 
cape from the savages. 

He found himself longing for the sight 
of a white face ; to again hear his native 
tongue, he would even welcome the rough- 
ness of the Clark Street boot-black, or the 
quaint brogue of the imported policeman, 
or even the monotonous sing-song of the 
Italian rag picker, or banana seller. Any- 
thing, so it was English. He would be more 
than willing to part with all the richness 
he saw around him for a sound of his native 
tongue, and a sight of civilization. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


149 


One evening as he was sitting at the door 
of his hut, wondering how he could con- 
trive to escape, and afterwards reach Ma- 
nila in safety, he felt a touch on his elbow% 
and turning he encountered the gaze of a 
very odd looking savage ; he wets darker 
than the average, and Floyd knew he had 
never seen him before. There was an ex- 
pression in the large black eyes that struck 
him as rather peculiar ; and when the sav- 
age placed one black finger on his lips, as 
a signal of silence, and jerked his head 
toward the interior of the hut, indicating 
his desire to see him in private, Floyd did 
not know whether to comply or call for the 
guard who was squatted near by on the 
ground, contentedly amusing himself by 
weaving together light pieces of bamboo, 
evidently intended for Floyd’s use in the 
hut; but there w^as that in the strange sav- 
age’s actions that told him it was to his 
interest. They were altogether out of the 
ordinary, and out of keeping with his sur- 
roundings. The jerk of the head, and the 
peculiar motion with his thumb, reminded 
Floyd of the sly tactics of a Chicago police- 
man in directing a friend to the side 


150 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


door of a saloon on Sundays so without dis- 
turbing his guard, he followed the old sav- 
age into the hut. He threw himself down 
on his couch, and waited for his compan- 
ion to speak. 

The fellow seemed to be in no hurry to 
make known his business, but squatting 
down on the hemp rugs that covered the 
floor he placed his face in his hands in an 
attitude of deep thought. Presently he 
looked up with an ugly smile on his black 
visage, and remarked in low tones and in 
perfect English: “You seem to have made 
yourself indispensable to these savages.” 

If the walls of the hut had been suddenly 
removed and the great city of Chicago 
been disclosed to his view Floyd would 
hardly have been more surprised at the 
transformation than he was at the sound 
of his native tongue coming from between 
the teeth of the black savage before him. 

Almost at the first word he jumped from 
the couch, and was about to throw himself 
in the fellow’s arms from very joy, when a 
sudden thought occurred to him. He was 
being tested. Was this not a clever ruse 
to discover his nationality, or to measure 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


161 


his inclination to escape ; so instead of do- 
ing what he intended at first he walked 
over to the door, looked out, as if to make 
sure of the whereabouts of his servant, 
then again threw himself full length 
upon the couch as unconcerned as if he had 
just now for the first time in his life heard 
the English language. But the piercing 
eye of the savage was upon him, and he 
seemed to read his thoughts like an open 
book, and, notwithstanding his attempt at 
sang froid^ his every motion and look be- 
trayed his excitement and curiosity. Again 
the low tones of the savage greeted his 
anxious ear. 

“These people say you possess wonder- 
ful power.” Still Floyd remained silent. 

A disappointed look crept into the man’s 
eyes, and presently he began to talk in 
French, then he tried German, but the re- 
sult was the same ; Floyd remained quiet, 
trying his best to quiet the tempest of 
homesickness that each moment threat- 
ened to overcome him. 

Coming back to English again the fellow 
said : “Well,mister,you are either a fool, or 
a Chicago boodler out here for your health. 
I’ll be blamed if I know which.” 


152 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


At this reference to his native city Floyd 
could restrain himself no longer, and 
laughed and cried together. All his sang 
froid deserted him and he begged his 
strange companion to make himself known. 

“Who in the name of Heaven are you?” 

“Oh, you are English then after all? 
Keep quiet ! Do you suppose I want to 
have the whole village about my ears. Lie 
down there and talk low. Who am I? 
That I am not prepared to tell you just now. 
Are you an Englishman or an American?” 

“American.” 

“Ah, I thought so. Let me shake your 
paw, old man, and thank your stars that 
1 happened to drop in here just as I did, 
presuming of course that you wish to es- 
cape. For myself,! can say the old woman 
will be powerful uneasy about me.” 

“Escape!” exclaimed Floyd; “why I 
have thought of nothing else for the last 
week, but how can I escape? Don’t you 
see how I am watched? These savage 
fiends think I possess some supernatural 
power, and have chosen me their God, or 
something.” 

“Yes, I know they think you caused that 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


15B 


small volcano over there to cease its erup- 
tion, and if you wish to escape you must 
do so before it breaks forth again.” 

‘‘Tell me something about yourself, that 
I may trust you,” said Floyd. 

“What do you wish to know.^” 

“What is your name?” 

“Samuel Johnstone, of Chicago; and 
yours?” 

“Floyd Vandercook, of the same city. 
What are you doing in this part of the 
world, and in this village in particular?” 

“I am a soldier; at present I am trying 
to save a fellow countryman from a lot of 
savages, and if said fellow countryman 
will quit asking so many immaterial ques- 
tions I may succeed ; if not we are both li- 
able to remain here until that volcano 
breaks out again, and then it’ll be all day 
for both of us.” 

“One more question, Johnstone, where 
did you get such an excellent make-up?” 

“I inherited it from my parents, sir. I’m 
a colored gentleman, a negro if you like. 
Now let up on your questions, and come 
down to something important. If the plan 
I have works all right I will explain who I 
am to-morrow’ morning-” 


154 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


“Agreed! now for your plan.” 

“It is this; we must capture that triplet 
down there, and make for the open sea.” 

“Triplet! What do you mean?” 

“Why that queer looking craft that 
brought you in here. It will be easy 
enough, there are only two men aboard her 
at night, and they sleep like logs.” 

“Yes easy enough, but you forget that 
even now there is a savage squatted out- 
side the door to watch my every move- 
ment.” 

“Never mind that part of it just now. 
Do you think you can steer the boat out to 
sea?” 

‘T can try ; at all events it will be no 
worse to be captured and killed, after try- 
ing to escape, than to die after not making 
any effort.” 

“Now you’re talking and I will tell you 
how to get rid of your jailer.” Johnstone 
now leaned over toward Floyd and they 
talked low and earnestly for some minutes, 
and when he at last slouched carelessly out 
of the hut unnoticed, details of their escape 
had been arranged. 


CHAPTER XII. 


Night, which was fast approaching when 
Johnstone left the hut, promised to be very 
dark. Great banks of dark clouds were 
beginning to make their appearance in the 
south, which would effectively shut off the 
light of the moon, that was due on the 
eastern horizon about ten p. m. Every- 
thing seemed to favor the escape of Floyd 
and his companion. 

Floyd lay down early, and his heavy 
breathing soon announced to the half naked 
savage ‘at the door, that his spiritual mas- 
ter was sound asleep. After looking around 
a bit to satisfy himself that all was well, 
he threw himself down across the open 
doorway of the hut to rest, and as a matter 
of course, to sleep. 

About eleven o’clock Floyd heard a 
slight noise resembling the drawing of a 
nail across a rough board ; at the first sound 
he moved slightly and listened ; again the 
low scratching sound came to his strained 
155 


26 A DANGEROUS MISSION 

ear, and he knew he was not mistaken, and 
reaching his hand beneath the rug of his 
couch he imitated the sound. All now be- 
came quiet again, except for the beating of 
his heart, that seemed to Floyd could surely 
be heard by the savage. After several mo- 
ments he raised himself to a sitting posture 
that enabled him to reach the life preser- 
ver that he always kept close at hand. He 
buckled it around his body, after assuring 
himself that his revolver and knife were 
safe in their places. During all this time 
the savage snored loudly and Floyd began 
to think that he might after all be able to 
escape without waking him ; so drawing his 
knife for instant use in case it should be- 
come necessary, he began to crawl noise- 
lessly towards the door, stopping every few 
feet to still the loud beating of his heart, 
that seemed to grow louder each second. 
At last he was at the door, and it only re- 
mained for him to step lightly over the 
outstretched form before breathing the 
blessed air of freedom. This he was about 
to do when with the agility of a monkey 
the savage jumped to his feet, and stood 
facing his prisoner. But Floyd was in no 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


157 


mood to weaken now, and he grasped his 
knife more iirmly, and started to brush by 
the native, who on seeing this threw his 
body forward as if, by its force, to fell 
Floyd to the floor ; but Floyd was looking 
for just such a move. The native’s eyes 
could be seen shining like a cat’s in the 
darkness, and as he came forward Floyd 
was just in the act of plunging his knife 
into his breast, when something else hap- 
pened. 

So intent on watching each other had 
they been that neither heard any noise in 
the back part of the hut, and Floyd had 
almost forgotten the existence of his new 
found friend, in his anxiety to get away ; 
but as he raised his arm to strike, it was 
caught in a vise like grip ;at the same time, 
the savage lurched forward as if pulled by 
some unseen power and with a gurgling, 
choking noise he sank down on the floor of 
the hut. It was Johnstone, who becoming 
uneasy at the seeming delay of Floyd in the 
hut, began feeling around underneath the 
floor for a place through which he might 
crawl ; in one place the thin boards oflPered 
no resistance to his touch, and he found 


158 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


that by working it a little to one side he 
could crawl up through the opening, which 
he did, and although it was dark, it was 
not dark enough to prevent his seeing what 
was going on near the door. 

Drawing a short, stout piece of cord, 
made into a noose, from a pocket, he rushed 
forward, and with unerring aim he threw 
it around the neck of the savage, and gave 
a sudden jerk, at the same instant grasp- 
ing Floyd’s arm as described, saying: 
“What! would you have that man’s death 
cry wake up the whole village? It’s lucky 
I arrived just as I did. Come, tie his hands 
while I stuff this in his mouth. In a min- 
ute the savage lay gagged and bound, and 
Floyd and his companion were quickly, yet 
with the silence of spectres, making their 
way toward the Catamaran. Noiselessly 
they pulled themselves aboard, Floyd at the 
bow, and Johnstone at the stern. They 
crawled cautiously along toward each 
other; they met near the center, and not 
having seen anything of the guards, de- 
cided to explore the cabin in the stern. As 
Johnstone was about to enter a curtain 
that served as a door was thrown quickly 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


159 


to one side, and a moment later both he 
and Floyd were engaged in a terrible 
struggle with the two savages. Johnstone 
was a very powerful man and he soon had 
his man down upon the deck, helpless, with 
the breath almost crushed out of his body. 

Floyd meanwhile was struggling man- 
fully, but in his weakened condition he 
was hardly a match for the half naked sav- 
age, and was fast losing his strength, and 
was being forced gradually toward the 
water, but contesting every inch of the 
ground with a brave determination not to 
give up, he reached for his knife, but it 
was gone. Up to this time the battle had 
been carried on in silence ; not a cry escaped 
the lips of the savages, they evidently not 
knowing the identity of their visitors ; but 
as Floyd discovered the loss of his knife, 
that he intended using as a last resort, his 
disappointment was so keen that he felt fur- 
ther effort unaided was useless, so he called 
to Johnstone: “Johnstone, I’m almost done 
for, can you help me?” 

At the sound of this voice the savage 
halted for a second to send forth one of the . 
most unearthly yells Floyd thought he hadi 


160 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


ever heard, and immediately the sound 
seemed to be taken up by a thousand throats, 
and like a terrible wail of the forever 
damned came floating back to the deck of 
the Catamaran from all points of the com- 
pass. 

After giving venD to that one wild cry 
the savage threw himself upon his panting 
and weary antagonist with redoubled fury, 
that carried Floyd oflP his feet, and over 
the side of the boat, at the same instant 
the savage received a blow from Johnstone 
that felled him to the deck like a log. 
Luckily the water was not very deep 
and Floyd managed to gain his feet and 
cling to the boat ; and was pulled on board 
by Johnstone, not much the worse for the 
bath he had been compelled to take. Then 
Ihe savages were securely bound to prevent 
further resistance. All this happened in a 
few seconds, and our friends knew that as 
soon as Floyd’s escape was noticed by the 
savages, the cry they had heard but once 
would be made plain to them, and would 
bring the whole village down upon the 
boat en masse. Therefore no time was to 
be lost. The Catamaran was cut loose 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


161 


from her moorings and as her head was 
turned toward the narrow channel to the 
sea, a gentle breeze from the south filled 
her canvas and sent her scudding along 
like a thing of life. The low, gurgling 
sound of the water at her bow came to the 
ear of Floyd like rippling laughter, as if 
even the boat was glad to escape from the 
abode of such dense ignorance and savag- 
ery. 

Suddenly a peculiar bluish tint became 
visible on the surface of the water, and 
looking away to the north Floyd could see 
the small volcano spouting forth fire and 
smoke, while a stream of lava could be seen 
near the summit, slowly making its way 
down its sides. 

‘‘There,” said Johnstone, “there goes 
yonder volcano. I’ve never been a Chris- 
tain, Vandercook, but if there is anything 
in Divine aid, we surely ought to be thank- 
ful for what has been given to us to-night. 
Look back there on the shore,” cried he. 

Floyd looked, and by the dim light of the 
volcano, and a pale moon creeping out from 
behind a cloud, he saw the shore literally 
lined with natives running up and down. 


162 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


‘‘Imagine,” continued Johnstone, ‘-what 
your fate would be were you among that 
swarm of devils, instead of on your way to 
civilization.” 

“Yes, I can imagine ; but I would respect- 
fully remark, Johnstone, that we are not 
in civilization. Just cast your eye along 
the shore west of the village and tell me 
what you see.” 

“Well,I’ll be blamed! if they ain’t string- 
ing out along the shore toward the sea ! 
What do you reckon they’re up to?” 

“I don’t know for sure, but I might as 
well tell you what I think. You know we 
must pass under a great arch, and through 
a rude tunnel nearly a half mile long, lead- 
ing from this bay into the sea; suppose for 
instance they drop rocks down upon us as 
we pass under, and drive a hole in our 
boat, our chances for reaching civilization 
won’t be so rosy.” 

“All I can say is, ‘Don’t give up the 
ship,’ for if you do you’re a dead man. 
You steer this old mud scow" into the hole, 
if you can, and we’ll trust to luck for the 
rest.” 

“We’ll be there in fifteen minutes, if 
I am not mistaken.” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


163 


“How long will it take the savages to 
reach the arch?” 

“It’s a good tw’enty-five minutes’ walk 
from the village. I should say the way 
they are running, they will have reached 
the top about the time we are due to pass 
under.” 

“If we could only increase the speed of 
this triple-expansion-double-breasted coffin 
of ours we might beat them after all,” said 
Johnstone as he moved forward toward the 
bow. Presently he gave a joyful cry. 
“Well of all the land lubbers I ever saw, 
Vandercook, we take the cake. Here’s a 
jib sail all coiled up, that will just save 
our lives. Watch out for it now when I 
run it up. There, how’s that? Run, you 
sons-o-sea-cooks, run!” (shaking his fist 
at the running figures on shore.) “We’ve 
got the inside track now.” 

Floyd at the helm noticed the difference 
in the boat’s speed even quicker than 
Johnstone, and his spirits rose accordingly, 
and he found himself actually smilling for 
the first time in many weeks. 

But even with the addition of the jib 
sail the race promised to be very close, and 


164 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


just as our friends were congratulating 
themselves on their lucky escape, the form 
of a savage could be seen outlined against 
the sky on the top of the arch, then another 
and yet another joined him, making in all 
three, representing the swiftest runners in 
the tribe. 

There were no more in sight, and those 
on the Catamaran did not anticipate any- 
thing serious from them, and the boat was 
now almost in the entrance ; others could 
not arrive in time to render their brethren 
any aid at the entrance. 

On she flew, and as the bow entered the 
yawning jaws of the dark channel, a huge 
boulder came rattling down upon her deck, 
going clear through it like a shot, but al- 
though others and even larger than the 
first were hurled at them from above, they 
were fortunate enough to escape further 
serious injury; but there was the same 
gauntlet to be run in emerging from the 
channel, and although the boat tore through 
the dark, narrow passage at a furious speed 
that each moment threatened total de- 
struction, our friends were unwilling, even 
if they had the power, to reduce its speed. 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


165 


as delay would only give their enemies 
above them a chance to gather in force at 
the exit. 

The darkness was so intense and oppres- 
sive that it could almost be felt, and the 
strain on the men’s nerves was terrible. 
Here they were going at a terrible rate of 
speed, which was increased it seemed by a 
strong current running out to sea, darkness 
thick and deep on every hand. A slight 
deviation from the proper direction and 
the craft would be smashed into a shapeless 
wreck, against the slimy sides of the chan- 
nel. And although the speed of the boat’ 
together with the low temperature of the 
damp, dark hole made the air quite cool, 
Floyd could feel the cold sweat trickling 
down his face, so intense was his anxiety. 
But a faint light now appeared ahead of 
them, and a moment later they shot out 
into the long swells of the sea, amid a 
shower of rock, accompanied by several 
spears from above; one spear lodging in 
the deck so close to Johnstone that half an 
inch would have settled his earthly career 
for all time. By close calculations they 
figured that the trip through the tunnel 


166 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


had occupied less than three minutes, yet 
at the time it had seemed to them an end- 
less age. 

But the strain was too much for Floyd, 
and Johnstone found him weak and almost 
unconscious from the effects of the terrible 
events through which he had passed. 
“Poor hoy,” murmured Johnstone, as he 
made him as comfortable as he could in the 
badly shattered cabin. “You’ll want wa- 
ter when you wake up, and owing to our 
hasty and unceremonious departure, I fear 
that that important article, as well as food 
was forgotten. But we are free, at all 
events ; while tucked safely away in my 
woolly hair I have something that would 
make our dear Aguinaldo swear backwards, 
if he knew it.” 


CHAPTER XIII. 


One morning some few days later, as 
Captain Lamberton of the Olympia was 
at his desk, an officer entered, saluted, and 
said: ‘‘A craft coming up the bay, sir.” 

“Nothing singular about that, is there? 
Crafts come up the bay quite regularly, 
for all I know to the contrary.” 

“Not like this one, sir. She’s the fun- 
niest looking thing I ever saw, and she 
acts very strange, sir.” 

“How long is it since she was first no- 
ticed?” 

“Fully an hour, and she has made no 
headway since.” 

“Very well. I’ll be on deck in a moment.” 
When the captain appeared the strange 
craft was pointed out to him. He gazed 
at it for several seconds through the glass, 
then said: “It’s a Catamaran, and in dis- 
tress I should judge. Lower away one of 
the boats, and go to her rescue, and bring 
her along side.” 


167 


168 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


In about an hour the Catamaran was 
along side Admiral Dewey’s flag ship, and 
Floyd Vandercook and Johnstone, both too 
weak to stand, were being carried on board. 

As quick as Captain Lamberton saw 
Johnstone he cried : “Why, it’s Johnstone, 
the man sent out by General Otis ! Care- 
ful there, men, give them the best cabin in 
the ship, and let me know when they are 
able to talk.” Every attention possible was 
given the two men, and early in the after- 
noon Johnstone asked to see the captain. 

“Well, Johnstone, we never expected to 
see you again, we thought you dead.” 

“Not dead, sir, but I have had some 
very close calls.” 

“Did you succeed in carrying out Gen- 
eral Otis’ instructions?” 

“Yes sir, and to the letter. I suppose it 
is all right to turn these papers over to you 
for delivery to General Otis,” and John- 
stone after groping around in the long 
wool that covered his head, handed the 
captain two small sheets of paper. “They 
contained rude drawings of all the principal 
cities, as well as the strength of their gar- 
risons, etc.” 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


169 


“You’ll be well paid for this, Johnstone; 
it’s a great achievement.” 

“All the pay I want, sir, is an honorable 
discharge, so I can go back to the United 
State.^i with Vandercook, and see the ole 
woman, she’s — ” 

“Vandercook! did you say? My man, 
you are in luck to be sure. There’s a re- 
ward of twenty- five thousand dollars for 
the finding of his body, dead or alive, and 
you shall have it too.” 

“Ah, then he is a criminal after all; but 
I was sure he told me the truth about a rich 
uncle.” 

“He told you the truth, his uncle has 
offered the reward; there has been foul 
play somewhere, and I want to give you a 
piece of advice; don’t let it become known 
here that Vandercook has been found, and 
I wish you would tell him as much when 
he awakes. I will wire his uncle at once. 
You will return on the Buffalo ;that sails to- 
morrow night.” 

“I can’t sail unless I am discharged, and 
I am afraid the old woman’ll be very un- 
easy about me.” 

“I said you’ll sail on the Buffalo, and I 


170 


A DANGEEOUS MISSION 


mean to see that you do. Your discharge 
or a furlough will be given you, and with 
the reward of twenty-five thousand dollars 
you and your wife can be happy, for the 
rest of your days, and I sincerely hope they 
will be many.” 

“I don’t want to go without Vandercook, 
and I don’t know whether he will be able 
to start or not. As for the twenty-five 
thousand dollars, of course if I’ve earned 
it I’ll not refuse it; but I swear sir, I be- 
lieve I owe as much to Vandercook as he 
does to me, for I was lost myself and he 
steered that old wash-board out of that 
hole better than any sailor living could 
have done it. Present company excepted 
of course.” 

“Come Johnstone, tell the truth now,” 
said a weak voice from an adjoining room. 
“You know I fainted and let you do all the 
work after we got through the hole.” 

^‘If Idid it was because I thought of 
jmy own precious life, and the old woman 
back in Chicago. Did you hear the cap- 
tain say we’re to start home to-morrow 
night?” 

A faint cheer answered his question 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


171 


“Do you think you mil be able to 
start?” 

“If starting home depends on my getting 
well I want to tell you I am a well man 
now. Of course I’ll be able to go.” 

The next day Admiral Dewey visited the 
men, and General Otis wrote to Johnstone 
enclosing furlough. 

Floyd was in high spirits, having re- 
ceived a cablegram from his uncle begging 
him not to delay his return, and when at 
last the Buffalo steamed out of Manila har- 
bor it carried away two of the happiest 
mortals alive. 

Johnstone, who, ever since reaching Ma- 
nila thought of nothing but the “Ole Wo- 
man,” could talk of nothing but her joy on 
his return, picturing to Floyd how her 
eyes would light up at sight of him, while 
Floyd was content to listen with half 
closed eyes, thinking of the welcome he 
himself would receive ; and need I say that 
Wadna, his queen, with her sweet smile, 
and glad eyes, was the thought uppermost 
in his mind. 


CHAPTER XIV. 


Although HeaflPord Vandercook did not 
expect to be able to learn much regard- 
ing Floyd from Clayton Melrose’s actions, 
he was convinced that the fellow was re- 
sponsible for Floyd’s continued silence and 
he decided to have him shadowed. So he 
employed a detective (from a noted detec- 
tive agency) for that purpose. 

A month went by and as the detective 
had learned nothing (except to confirm the 
old man in his belief as to his nephew’s de- 
pravity of character) he had almost de- 
cided to dispense with the “special’s” ser- 
vices, when one morning that worthy 
called on him at his office, and requested a 
private audience without delay. When 
they were alone the detective handed him 
a cablegram intended for Melrose, but 
which he had cleverly intercepted. 

It was dated Hong Kong, and read : 

“Mission accomplished by ship-wreck. Am 
172 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


173 


returning alone. Wire or meet me at San 
Francisco on arrival of Coptic.” 

“Leudesso.” 

“Who is this Leudesso?” asked Mr. Van- 
dercook, still studying the message at arms’ 
length. 

“From the name I should judge he is a 
Spaniard, or a native of the Philippines, 
perhaps.” 

“What do you understand from that mes- 
sage. Am afraid to think, or trust to my 
own interpretation.” 

“Well, sir, in the first place, your nephew 
was sent to the Philippines I think you 
said. He lacked experience, both as a 
traveler and in the particular line of work 
to which you assigned him.” 

“Go on,” said the old man sadly, “you 
are telling the exact truth.” 

“I think you also said it had always been 
your intention to make him your heir.” 

“It is the fondest hope of my life.” 

“Who, may I ask, would become your 
legal heir in the event of Floyd’s death?” 

“My other nephew, Clayton Melrose, 
curse him.” 

“Precisely. Now then, Floyd being in- 


174 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


experienced as a traveler, and being anx- 
ious to learn beforehand all he could of the 
country to which he was going, a Spaniard, 
or a Filipino would have no trouble in 
gaining his confidence and his friendship. 
You will notice the message reads, ‘Am re- 
turning alone,’ meaning he went away from 
the United States in company with some 
one. ‘Mission accomplished by shipwreck.’ 
Now what was the mission? What mission 
in the Orient could Clayton Melrose be in- 
terested in, in connection with a Spaniard 
or a Filipino?” 

“The murder of Floyd Vandercook, and 
I his uncle, am his real murderer. Oh, 
God have mercy on my gray hairs!” 

“Tut, tut, man, don’t waste your energy 
in self-reproaches, all is not hopeless. 
Remember ship wrecks are quite common. 
There is always a chance for escape, and 
your nephew has that chance; although 
from this slip of paper it would appear that 
the conspirators are evidently satisfied that 
they have succeeded in putting him out of 
the way, there is, as I said, a chance in 
favor of your nephew’s rescue.” 

“No, no! He is dead — dead — dead — and 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


175 


I am his murderer. I am his murderer,” 
he murmured, burying his face in his hands. 

The detective said nothing more, know- 
ing that the paroxysm of grief would soon 
give way to a determination to punish his 
nephew, and he was not mistaken. 

“Go!” cried the old man rising, “collect 
your evidence, follow this man, Leudesso, 
and my nephew^ like a deadly serpent, 
weave around them a web of evidence from 
which they cannot escape, then we will 
strike! And remember I will never be sat- 
isfied until I can laugh in their faces as 
they are about to be swung into eternity 
from the gallows. I have fed Clayton Mel- 
rose with a generous hand. He has crueby 
bitten me in return. Now I will show him 
how heavy that same hand can be to pun- 
ish him for this heartless murder. I am 
willing to spend my whole fortune for the 
sake of seeing my Floyd’s murderers swing 
from the gallows. 

“Go, but if you can find a trace oI him 
that will give me a ray of hope, do not de- 
lay, but come to me immediately. Oh 
Floyd ! Floyd ! If I could only bring you 
back.” 


176 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


The detective left the office with this sad 
wail ringing in his ears, and he determined 
that if Floyd was alive he would move 
Heaven and earth to find him. Hence the 
reward of twenty-five thousand dollars 
Johnstone found awaiting him in Manila 
as related elsewhere. 

The detective caused the cablegram to 
be delivered to Clayton Melrose, and began 
to wait for results. 

Not a moment did he lose sight of his 
man, but he could take no decisive action 
until the arrival of Leudesso, who he in- 
tended to place under arrest immediately. 

One afternoon several days before the 
steamer Coptic, from the Orient, was due to 
;arrive at San Francisco, the detective 
ffieard someone coming up the stairs three 
rSteps at a time, and before he had time to 
iturn the key in the lock, the door flew open 
and Heafford Vandercook bounded into 
the room, so badly winded he was unable 
to utter a word. The perspiration was 
running down his face in streams he threw 
a paper into the detective’s face and began 
to dance around the room like a young boy, 
and after reading the paper the detective 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


177 


joined him. A glance at the paper re- 
vealed the cause. It was a message from 
Floyd to his uncle, announcing his arrival 
in Manila and his intention to sail for 
home on the transport Buffalo. 

In due time Leudesso arrived in San 
Francisco, and was immediately ‘‘spotted” 
by Heafford Vandercook’s “special,” who 
actually made his acquaintance on their 
way across the continent ; but if the detec- 
tive expected to gain any information from 
the man by this he was mistaken, as he 
avoided all reference to himself, merely 
saying he was returning to the United 
States after a visit to his native land, the 
Philippine Islands. 

The morning after Leudesso’s arrival in 
Chicago Mr. Vandercook, who was in his 
private office in consultation with the de- 
tective, was very much surprised at hear- 
ing Clayton Melrose’s angry voice in the 
corridor, in an altercation with the porter, 
who refused to allow him to enter the office 
without permission from Mr. Vandercook. 

“Get out of my way, fellow, I wish to see 
my uncle at once; do you hear, at once.” 

“Orders are to allow no one to disturb 
him without permission, sir.” 


178 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


‘‘Permission be hanged. Do you know 
who I am? I’m Mr. Vandercook’s nephew, 
and I must see him without delay.” 

“Wait here and I will see if he will see 
you.” 

At this juncture Mr. Vandercook, having 
concealed the detective behind a large book 
case, opened the office door, and said with 
a sweet smile “allow my nephew to enter, 
Andrew, I did not mean to exclude him. 
Come in, Clayton. Come in. Oh, you 
have company,” seeing the form of Leu- 
desso now for the first time. “Very well, 
bring the gentleman along.” 

“Thanks, uncle. Fact is, sir, this gen- 
tleman has some very important informa- 
tion.” 

“Ah, Clayton,” with a sigh, “there is 
only one kind of information that I care 
much for now. News of Floyd. Poor boy. 
But if I only knew whether dead or alive, 
I would take it less hard perhaps. But I’m 
glad to see you. You call so seldom, you 
know. I fear you do find me dull company, 
so I can’t blame you.” 

“Well, well,” thought Melrose. “Here’s 
a go ! The old gent falling right in line 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


179 


with my plans. Seems to be softening 
toward me too. Then aloud : 

“No, no, Uncle, I always enjoy your 
company. But since no news has been re- 
ceived from Floyd I have thought that 
perhaps it would be better not to intrude 
myself, and for the further reason that I 
have imagined my visits might be miscon- 
strued. So I have remained away, against 
my own wishes.” 

“You do me an injustice, Clayton. How 
could 1 misconstrue your visits, knowing 
you as I do? Nonsense, sir. You imagine 
I might think your visits were prompted 
by mercenary motives, eh? How very ab- 
surd; as I said you do me an injustice.” 

Melrose failed to notice the faint irony 
in the old man’s tone, and he was beguiled 
into thinking that he had at least been ac- 
cepted as Floyd^s successor in his uncle’s 
heart, and it gave him courage and assur- 
ance in disclosing the object of his visit. 

‘T am very happy. Uncle, to know and 
feel that I have your respect, and I hope I 
am correct when I add, your love.” 

“Quite correct, my boy.” 

“And if I have not been to see you lately. 


180 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Uncle, it is because I have been working 
hard to bring about that which I knew 
would please you, namely, a solution of 
Floyd’s mysterious silence. 

“And like myself you have failed, of 
course,” said Vandercook sadly. 

“On the contrary, Uncle, I have not 
failed.” 

“What! you have news of Floyd? Come 
man, out with it. Don’t keep me waiting. 
Don’t you see this suspense is almost kill- 
ing me?” The old man’s acting was so 
perfect and his agitation so apparent, the 
detective was so pleased with it that he 
felt like rushing from his hiding place to 
congratulate him, and Clayton Melrose did 
not for a moment doubt its genuineness ; 
in his eagerness to follow the advan- 
tage he supposed he had gained, he be- 
came excited himself and hurriedly told his 
uncle how, becoming anxious on account 
of his cousin’s safety, whom he thought a 
great deal of, (a direct falsehood) and 
wishing to relieve his uncle’s mind of the 
terrible worry, he had instigated inquiries 
at several different places in the far East, 
and had offered a reward of thirty thous- 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


181 


and dollars for information leading to the 
discovery of his cousin. He had almost 
given up all hope of hearing anything, 
when he received a cablegram from a Mr. 
Leudesso that shocked and pained him be- 
yond all expression. “This, Uncle,” said 
he, introducing the Filipino, “is Mr. 
Leudesso, who can tell you about the sad 
afPair, for I feel I am not equal to the task.” 

“Oh! He is dead! He is dead!” ex- 
claimed Mr. Yandercook in well feigned 
anguish. There is no need to tell me. I 
can see it written on both your faces. Tell 
me, Mr. Leudesso, how did he meet his 
death?” 

“In a shipwreck, senior. I saw him 
struggling in the water and swam to his 
aid, but before I reached him a piece of 
wreckage had struck him, and all I could 
save was his dead body. Ah senior, it was 
a very sad sight. This paper, senior, I 
found on his body and kept as means to 
let his friends know his fate.” 

“Oh, Clayton, this is terrible,” wailed 
the old man. “While I thank you for 
your kind efforts to comfort me, I cannot 
conceal the great grief this news has 


182 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


caused me. I am heart-broken, my boy. 
A heart-broken old man. Leave me, Clay- 
ton, I beg of you. I wish to be alone with 
my sorrow.” 

“Uncle, no word from me can express 
my sorrow for you, but my own grief, sir, 
is great, for I loved Floyd.” 

“Go, boy, go! Leave me, I say, for the 
present, but remember you are welcome. 
I thank you, Mr. Leudesso, for your 
kindness and I will see to it that you are 
suitably rewarded. Good day.” He bowed 
the men out and quickly closed the door, 
completely disgusted, and almost sick from 
the effect of the interview. The hypocrisy 
and deceit of his nephew was nauseating. 
“To think,” cried he, “that man is my 
sister’s boy, my nephew. A wanton cow- 
ard, an unfeeling villain, and almost a mur- 
derer.” 

Time passes very quickly for those who 
have something to do in a given period, and 
the transport Buffalo was due at New York 
before all of Mr. Vandercook’s plans had 
matured. 

Miss Virden was taken into his confi- 
dence, and when informed that Floyd was 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


183 


alive and returning home, she was almost 
overcome with joy, and after learning the 
details of Melrose’s plot, she readily agreed 
to the plan outlined by Mr. Vandercook. 

Clayton Melrose’s mind was not dis- 
abused one jot, and he was allowed to think 
that his story had been accepted as truth; 
his uncle’s kindness to him was a proof 
that he had succeeded in gaining his con- 
:fidence and love, to say nothing of the 
more important consideration, the old 
man’s money. 

One thing he did not quite understand 
— his uncle’s ready consent to his mar- 
Tiage with Miss Virden. Instead of offer- 
ing any objections, Mr. Vandercook urged 
its early consummation, and was good 
enough to name the day, and Melrose 
thought carried his goodness to extremes 
when he actually offered to intercede with 
Miss Virden to give her consent. “You 
will settle down, Clayton, when you are 
married, and in our new relation to each 
other I much prefer it.” 

Still at a loss to account for it all, Mel- 
rose agreed, and as Miss Virden’s consent 
was forthcoming, the day was fixed. 


184 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


and it was not so strange after all to 
relate that the date agreed upon was 
to be four days after the transport Buffalo 
was due to arrive at New York. Melrose, 
of course, was ignorant of this. He had 
ceased to bother himself about the arrival 
of ships, transports or otherwise. He 
was as happy as a very fortunate man 
could be, and he considered himself es- 
pecially fortunate, he never thought or 
dreamed of the possibility that Floyd was 
other than dead, and his bones deep down 
in the unfathomable depths of the sea. 
So he felt perfectly safe and happy. He 
knew the money to pay Leudesso would be 
forthcoming, directly he was married ; in 
the meantime he kept the Filipino in good 
spirits by an allowance out of his own 
pocket. He was not so happily pre-occu- 
pied, however, that he failed to notice the 
worried expression ®n his uncle’s counte- 
nance that appeared there, when his wed- 
ding day was but one day off. He was un- 
able to account for it, but a visit to his 
uncle’s office on this particular evening 
finds him again in consultation with the 
detective. The former is very nervous, and 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


185 


is walking the floor with quick strides. 
He is saying: “This is a devil of a pickle I 
find myself in by taking your advice.” 

The detective paused between puffs of 
his cigar to ask : “What pickle do you re- 
fer to, sir?” 

“What pickle do I refer to? Heavens, 
man how many pickles do you think there 
are at this particular time?” 

“I don’t understand you.” (PuffIPuflP!) 

“You make me feel like showing_ you 
the door, ’’cried the old man contemptuous- 
ly. “How can you sit there in evident en- 
joyment, when our plans, or your plans 
rather, have all fallen through? Here it is 
one day before the day set for the wedding 
and not one word from the Buffalo. All 
my messsages to Secretary Long about her 
remain unanswered. How do you account 
for that?” 

“I will admit that the Secretary is rather 
‘Long.’ ” (Puff! Puff!) 

“Rather long? I should say as much! 
Floyd cannot possibly reach here now be- 
fore the v’^edding, even if he were in New 
York at the present time, where he is not. 
Well, you’re a condemned fool, that’s all, if 


186 


A DANGEBOUS MISSION 


you cannot see what a couple of ninnies we 
have made of ourselves.” 

‘‘What can I do?” 

“By George! I’ll tell you what you can 
do, and I order you to do it. Arrest Clay- 
ton Melrose and this yellow-skinned Leu- 
desso at once. Do you suppose I want him 
to marry the sweetest girl in the world af- 
ter all the trouble I’ve gone to to prevent 
it, and when I know she loves Floyd, and 
when I know Floyd loves her, and 
when I know I love her, and everybody 
loves her that knows her? Not by a long 
chalk! ” 

“And if you’ll allow me to express an 
opinion in the matter, Uncle, I exclaim 
with you, ‘Not by a long chalk !’ said Floyd 
stepping out from behind the tall book 
case. 

He was very thin and very much tanned 
and his face was covered with a black, silky 
beard, but Heafford Vandercook recognized 
him instantly, and with a “Thank God,” he 
clasped him to his breast, and great tears 
found their way down his wrinkled cheek, 
while a voice from the hall-way said, 
‘ ‘Well, hurry up, Floyd. My ole woman’ll 


A DANGEKOUS MISSION 


187 


be powerful anxious about me.” And a mo- 
ment later Johnstone was ushered into the 
room, all smiles, and evidently happy, for 
he had already been to see his “Ole Wom- 
an,” and at Floyd’s pressing invitation 
had come up to the office to meet his uncle. 

After congratulations and handshakings 
had been indulged in some half-dozen 
times(for the old man would insist on it 
every minute) the detective explained how, 
wishing to surprise Mr. Vandercook, he 
had kept him in ignorance of the arrival 
of the Buffalo, by keeping back the infor- 
mation furnished by Secretaay Long, which 
also accounted for the latter’s silence to Mr. 
Vandercook’s urgent appeal for informa- 
tion, and how he had concealed Floyd in the 
office that night while Mr. Vandercook was 
at tea. At the conclusion of the explana- 
tion Mr. Vandercook insisted an again em- 
bracing his nephew, and the details for the 
coming marriage were explained to Floyd, 
who thought it an excellent plan, after 
which the small party broke up. Floyd 
was carried away by his uncle. The de- 
tective went to his lonely bachelor rest, and 


188 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


Johnstone went home to tell the “ole 
woman” what was about to happen, and 
that they had been invited to the happen- 
ing. 


CHAPTER XV. 


Melrose arose early on his wedding day. 
In fact the thought that the morrow would 
see him married to a fortune, kept him 
awake a good part of the night. 

He had not gone to bed until late the 
evening before, either, for Leudesso had 
called to say that he would insist on receiv- 
ing his promised reward on the morrow, as 
soon as the ceremony was performed. This 
also had a tendency to add to his wakeful- 
ness, for he did not exactly see his way 
clear to ask for this amount so soon after 
marriage. He would prefer rather to ap- 
proach the money subject by degrees. This 
matter worried him not a little, therefore 
he was very much taken aback on looking 
into his mirror on the morning of this 
eventful day, to see himself pale and un- 
refreshed, with black rings under his eyes. 
His hair would not lay where he combed 
it, and other annoyances sorely tried his 
temperament, that was not over sweet by 
189 


190 A DANGEROUS MISSION 

nature, and as the day wore on he became 
nervous and fidgety ; an inexpressible dread 
came over him by degrees, lest something 
should transpire at the very last moment to 
cheat him out of his triumph, and he cursed 
the slowness of the time, that seemed to 
drag on with provoking slowness to the 
momentous hour that would end it all, by 
giving into his keeping a fortune and a 
bride at the same moment. Still at times 
he smiled complacently to himself, as he 
thought how successful had been his plan 
to remove the only man that could success- 
fully oppose him, and how completely he 
I ad succeeded in his efforts in safely estab- 
lishing himself in the good graces of his 
uncle. 

Meanwhile those at the Virden mansion 
were busy making arrangements for the 
wedding. Wadna went about with a light 
heart, with a smile on her face, and with a 
kindly word for all. The merry twinkle had 
returned to her eyes. The old house fairly 
rang with her laughter several times, some- 
thing so unusual for the last six months at 
least, that it caused the old cook to pause 
in the act of preparing the huge turkey for 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


191 


the coming feast, and roll back her eyes 
and exclaim : “Hear dat ! sumpens gwine 
ter happ’n in dis ole house I tole yeh ! Dat 
young Miss aint so happy ter marry Marse 
Clayton, dat it meks her sing. We all 
kno’ she don’t lub him. Den what for she 
larf like dat, hey? Oh I tole yer sumpens 
gwine ter transpire hyer befo’ long, mark 
my wuds!” 

Old man Virden wondered at the change 
in his daughter, but was too much pleased 
at the prospect of her marriage with Mel- 
rose to make any inquiries, and like Melrose 
he was impatient for the time to go by 
that he might see the realization of his 
mercenary hopes. 

He believed Melrose rich, and thought hy 
this union with his daughter, to recuper- 
ate his wasted fortune, while Melrose 
thought his prospective father-in-law rich, 
and desired the union partly from the same 
cause and partly from a feeling, not of 
love, as brave, true, honorable men love, 
for Clayton Melrose was incapable of so 
lofty a feeling. It was rather a natural 
desire to possess everything lofty and be- 
yond his reach in goodness and virtue, that 


192 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


he might drag it in the dust and mire 
to defile it, that prompted his determina- 
tion to possess Wadna Virden. Perhaps he 
thought he really loved her, but it is de- 
cidedly doubtful. 

It was decided out of deference to a sud- 
den whim of Mr. Vandercook that the cere- 
mony should be celebrated at the Virden 
home at nine o’clock in the evening,instead 
of at high noon, as was the accepted style. 
Supper was to be served after the marriage, 
and arrangements were accordingly made 
on an elaborate scale. 

By seven o’clock many of the invited 
quests, of which (by Mr. Vandercook’s ex- 
press desire) there were not a few, had 
-^arrived, and by nine o’clock all was in 
-readiness. The bridesmaids were all there, 
as was also Melrose’s best man. Evidences 
of wealth and refinement on every hand. 
Everything was in first class style and cor- 
rectly up to date. There were natural 
flowers in abundance which always adds a 
pleasing eflPect to such occasions. 

Music soft and beautiful from a select 
.set of musicians, floated into the several 
jTOoms, that seemed to tell each one assem- 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


193 


bled, old and young and medium, the old, 
old story of Love that was, that is and 
ever shall be, the hinge upon which the 
happiness of life .depends. 

The air is laden with a sweet perfume 
that is pleasing to the senses. All is hap- 
piness. Not a cloud nor a scowl is visible 
anywhere, for to the minds of the older 
it brings back a very happy period in their 
own lives, and their hearts swell again 
with the fire of their early love. To the 
young element it is no less pleasing, mark- 
ing as it does a period in their own lives 
that is yet to come. 

But it is nine oVdock ! Where is the 
bride? Ah! here she comes. As beautiful 
as any dream, a deep flush on her brow. 
Her eyes sparkling like diamonds with ex- 
citement, indeed almost out rival the costly 
necklace of precious stones that encir- 
cle her shapely neck and blaze and sparkle 
in the light. 

She is leaning on the arm of her father, 
who has advanced to the center of the 
room, and is about to place her hand in 
that of Clayton Melrose, when Mr. Van- 
dercook’s voice rang out sharply: ‘‘Hold! 


194 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


I demand that these ceremonies shall cease 
at once.” 

At the sound of his voice Virden let his 
daughter’s hand drop as if it were a coal 
of fire, and his face turned a sickly color 
as he said weakly: “Why, sir, I — er — 
thought — er — you desired this union.” 

Melrose, who but a moment before was 
all smiles, now turned toward his uncle a 
face distorted with rage and cried : 

“What is the meaning of this, sir.^” 

“My reasons are many; one of which is 
that I do not wish to see this young lady 
the wife of a would-be murderer. Clayton 
Melrose, although you are my sister’s son, 
I renounce you before this gathering of my 
friends, and I take this opportunity to tell 
you that all your plotting and all your plans 
have failed. If you doubt my word you 
have only to turn your head to prove the 
truth of what I have said.” 

Long before his uncle ceased the look of 
rage on Melrose’s face had turned to fear, 
and as he turned his head and encountered 
Floyd’s smiling face, he gave a low cry and 
started back; the abject terror depicted on 
his face was pitiable. He put up his hands 


A DANGEROUS MISSION 


195 


to his eyes to shut out the sight of his 
cousin’s face, and made a dive for the door, 
with these words of Mr. Vandercook ring- 
ing in his ears: “Thank God that you are 
not a murderer and never let me see your 
face again.” 

As he ran out into the night, Leudesso, 
who had concealed himself in the house, 
glided swiftly out after him. 

After the excitement had subsided Mr. 
Vandercook explained to those assembled 
how Melrose had plotted to have Floyd put 
out of the way, and how near he had suc- 
ceeded. 

Floyd was the. hero of the hour, and the 
bridegroom of the hour as well, for as Mr. 
Vandercook said, it would never do to disap- 
point his friends, and if Floyd could not 
prevail on Wadna to furnish a wedding he 
declared his intention to marry her himself 
then and there, consent or no consent. 

Mr. and Mrs. Johnstone were there 
and as the former was presented to Mrs. 
Floyd Vandercook he said: “You must have 
been powerful oneasy about him.” 

Wadna did not answer but Floyd felt her 
little hand tighten in his, while her eyes 


196 


A DANGEBOUS MISSION 


expressed a world of love far more eloquent. 

As it is the general custom to dispose of 
all the characters of a story, I append the 
following taken from a morning paper of 
January fifteenth, in lieu of going into de- 
tails. 

“This morning as officer Carr was making 
his rounds near the Pennsylvania depot, 
he almost stumbled over the body of a man 
between a side track and the main line. 
On examination it was found the man had 
been dead some time. A great wound in 
the back between the shoulders leaves no 
doubt in the minds of the police that it is a 
case of cowardly murder. The only clue 
obtained so far to the murderer is a silver 
mounted knife with a bloody blade, with 
the one word ‘Leudesso’ engraved on the 
handle. The murdered man has been iden- 
tified as Clayton Melrose, a well known 
society man of this city.” 


THE END. 


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^ ©^Mission 



^ STORY OF THE PHILIPPINES 



THK EDITOR PUBLISHING 0O„ ' 

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